Between Night and Day
by Storyseeker
Summary: What would have happened if Prince Malcolm had died from the Archmage's poison and had realised just how destructive Katherine's view of the Gargoyles was? Set in an alternate universe, in Wyvern's past. ANNOUNCEMENT
1. Chapter 1

_**All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company.  
No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder.  
All original characters are the property of Storyseeker and Hardwing.**_

_**This story was co-written with the great author Hardwing! Many thanks!**_

_**This fic saga is set in an alternate universe, in Wyvern's past, with characters from the Dark Ages Saga in TGS and some of Hardwing's own characters. It starts off right after the events shown in the show's episode 'Long Way To Morning' in 984 A.D. where the events in that chapter lead to a different conclusion for the clan. It is also set in the same timeline as the show in that era, with one small difference… and that's Goliath didn't get his name until just after 984 A.D.**_

_**Oh, and in case some people get offended at some of the sexist remarks in this saga… Please remember that it is set in the medieval ages.**_

_**Many thanks to the following websites for all their helpful knowledge, to Kimberly Towle for her suggestions, and to the author Aesop for all his proofreading…**_

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**Scotland; Castle Wyvern; 984 A.D.: **

The scarred Gargoyle made his way down the long corridors of Castle Wyvern. He had been summoned to the Prince's bedchamber where he was even now waiting to see him.

The old warrior winced, as he approached the Prince's door, not really wanting to see him. For he was too ashamed…

Despite their best efforts, the former leader and his two young warriors had failed in their attempt to save the Prince. Although they had succeeded in relinquishing the magic book, the Grimorum Arcanorum, from the now deceased sorcerer Archmage, they had already been too late. In fact, they had been too late from the moment the poison had entered the Prince's bloodstream.

The Archmage had been no fool. He knew that someone would no doubt try and steal the Grimorum from him so that the young Magus could retrieve the antidote from its pages. That was why he had made certain that the poison he used on the Prince was extra strong and even extra virulent.

By the time they had administered the cure, the poison had already done its worst. They just didn't know it at the time.

At first, the antidote seemed to work and he appeared to be making a full recovery, but alas that was only temporary…

Although they had saved him from death in the morning, they had not saved him from death completely. The poison had left his body so ravaged with sickness that within the next two days his body had become so ill that he could barely breathe properly.

The Magus had tried his best, but in the end concluded that the Prince had less than a few weeks before the Angel of Death would come to claim him, a month at the very most.

So the old Gargoyle and his warriors had saved the Prince… only for him to survive a few more weeks, during which he would suffer greatly. And the Archmage, who was now the only one who could possibly help him, was dead.

The old Gargoyle Mentor felt sick with guilt and grief, as he felt the scar that now occupied his left eye that was now blind. An injury he had sustained during his last fight with the Archmage, which was now a symbol to the mockery of his everlasting shame.

The rest of the castle had also been in deep mourning since news of the Prince's fate became known, especially the Princess Katherine who had been spending all her time with her father. It didn't need to be said, but she obviously bore a great vendetta against the now former leader of the Gargoyle clan, blaming him for her father's coming death. Every one in the castle feared what she would do for retribution once her father was gone and she would take the throne.

The Prince had sworn to them all that he bore them no ill will, as he knew they had tried their best, and thanked them for their admirable effort. But even so, the old Gargoyle still shuddered with shame and disgust at the memory of his miserable and worst failure ever… If he had only just been even the tiniest bit faster when the Archmage had shot that poison dart at the Prince!

Swallowing his guilt, he knocked on the door and entered…

"You asked to see me, Your Highness?" he asked, as he entered the Prince's bedchamber, wincing a little as he saw the Prince barely breathing.

"Yes, old friend," the Prince croaked, and indicated him to sit. "Come, we have much to discuss."

"Have we?" the old soldier said curiously, sitting beside the bed.

"My friend," Malcolm winced. "I have been a fool… and what's worse, I have been a failure."

"What?" his comrade said, shocked. "What do ye mean? When have you ever failed at anything?"

"I'm talking about my daughter," the Prince looked at him with a small humourless smile on his face. "I have failed with her and ye know it, so don't bother denying it."

"Your Highness," the old Gargoyle said unsurely. "I'm not sure what you… "

"Oh, come now," Malcolm rebuked him. "I may be dying, and I may not have been the sharpest blade in the weapon-smith, but I'm not blind or _completely_ stupid. I've seen the way she acts around you and your kind, the way she treats you… She obviously has about as much love for your clan as I did for the Archmage."

The aged warrior opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again, his honour not allowing him to lie… not even to spare his friend the pain of the truth. "Aye," he finally said. "Tis true, the lass don't exactly agree with us being here."

"Even though you have more right to be here than we," Malcolm coughed. "These cliffs were your home ages before Wyvern was even built. And it was built so that our two clans could live together in peace and harmony, and now… Now, I fear I may have destroyed that dream with Katherine."

"My Lord, ye can't… "

"Be silent!" Malcolm said forcibly, and immediately started coughing again. "I told Katherine those ridiculous tales of how Gargoyles would come and get her if she didn't behave. That's all they were, just silly old wives tales, yet she seems to have fully embraced them as fact. You yourself warned me not to frighten her so, but I just thought you were being over sensitive. I now know you were right, old friend… I caused this… I turned her into a bigot!"

A fit of coughs came over him again, and his friend instantly handed him a goblet of water, which he gratefully accepted.

"I tried talking to her, get her to see the error of her ways, but she won't listen," Malcolm said miserably.

"Ye were only the catalyst, My Lord," his friend assured him. "The Princess lives in a castle that's filled with those who don't approve of our presence here. It was only a matter of time before she started listening to them."

"And what will happen once I'm gone?" Malcolm asked, worried. "I made her promise that she would honour the treaty between our two clans, and keep ye safe. But who knows how long that will last? And even then, that's no guarantee of how she or the other Humans here will treat you in the years to come."

The Gargoyle shrugged. "We have lived with Human hatred long enough," he replied. "It makes no difference to us how we are treated… "

"Well, it does to me!" Malcolm groaned. "This castle was created as a means of peace to us all. How it has come to this is beyond me. And I fear what will happen in the coming years, especially with my daughter on the throne. She's so young and hot-headed."

The warrior smirked. "She takes after her father in that respect."

Malcolm looked at him in indignation, but then smiled, laughing slightly. "Aye, I suppose she does… " But then his eyes turned solemn. "But I had my father to tend to me, to make me see my errors, and guide me in wisdom… Who will Katherine have when I am gone?" He groaned.

"Shall I summon the physician or the young Magus?" his friend asked, concerned.

"No, there's nothing more they can do, and we need to speak… " Malcolm winced. "I asked you here for a special reason, my old friend. There is nothing I want more than to secure the peace between our two clans, and ensuring the freedom and safety of you and yours. I had hoped Katherine would carry on that legacy when I departed this world, but now that is obviously not going to happen… "

"The lass is still just a wee bairn, My Liege," his friend reminded him. "The weight of the crown could… "

"You're playing a dangerous game of chance, my friend," Malcolm warned him. "She may mature in time, but then again she may not. The risk is too great to chance… " He coughed. "But I do have another suggestion… one that could help not only free your clan from this castle's bigotry, but also ensure that you will never be at risk to lose your home here."

"How can that be?"

Malcolm took another sip of water. "The Captain will be here soon. When he arrives, we will discuss everything, and then… When we are finished discussing this matter, you must go and talk to your new leader… For he will need to make a very important decision… One that will influence not only the welfare of his clan, but of mine."

The former leader of the Gargoyle clan looked at him dumbfounded, but nodded, and listened…

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"I tell you, my love," the red-haired, blue-skinned female snarled. "If I have to listen to that whining brat's contempt much longer, I will…!"

"My love," the male lavender Gargoyle tried to calm his Angel of The Night down.

They had both been on their way to meet with the clan at the battlements to discuss who was to be the next Clan-Second, though many believed there was no real need for it, as the redheaded female was not only one of the best warriors of the clan, but also the new leader's unofficial mate. She and the lavender warrior had been lovers for many years now, but had not been officially declared mates as of yet. Though it was doubtful that would remain the case, now that he had been made clan-leader.

Along the way they had unintentionally, and undesirably, run into the young Princess Katherine… Needless to say, the Princess had not been thrilled to see them and had as much told them by telling them to "Get out of my way, _monsters_!"

"To think that she will one day occupy the throne," his mate-to-be hissed. "It's outrageous!"

"She is still merely a child, Night-Angel," he said diplomatically. "In time, she should… "

"She may not have time!" his lover said forcibly. "You and I both know, as do the rest of the clan, that the Prince is close to death's door. Soon, the four winds will come and claim him, and his brat of an heir will take the throne. And once she does that, what will become of us? Do you really think she holds any value to us as the guardians of this castle?"

Her future mate kept silent.

"Do you honestly think that once she's sitting on that oversized throne that she won't take the first opportunity to order our heads shattered during the day? And if she did then who would be there to stop her if not her father?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could…

"Lad?"

The two of them turned to see their old Mentor coming down the corridor toward them. They both bowed their heads respectfully, but after years of serving under his command and learning from him, the male warrior knew at once that was something was up. The way the old teacher stared intently at him was a clear sign that he had something on his mind.

"Mentor?" he asked.

The old soldier didn't respond at first, and just looked to the companion of his present leader. "Lass, our leader and I need to talk. Why don't you go and join the others, let them know we'll be running a little late, aye?"

The redhead stared at him for a moment, but then just nodded and hurried away, sensing too that the old Mentor had something he wanted to say to her soon to be official mate.

"Lad?" the former leader said again, looking to his former pupil. "Come and glide with me. We need to talk… _now_."

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The new leader of the Wyvern clan had spent the last hour listening to his old Mentor about what he, the Captain and Prince Malcolm had been discussing. So far, his mind was in turmoil, confused and full of doubt.

"My Mentor," he began. "I'm not sure… what… To be honest, I am completely speechless at what you are saying. I don't know what to say or even what to think of this. Do you have _any_ idea of what _you_ are suggesting?"

The old warrior nodded. "Believe me, lad, when the Prince first suggested it I was more than sceptical. But the fact is, terrible as it sounds, he is right. I've known the Princess all her life. I've watched her grow, and I've seen the way she recoils every time one of us gets close to her."

His former pupil took a long breath, thinking. "She is still quite young, though… " he started, repeating what he had said to his beloved earlier.

"And she might mature in time, yes I know," his teacher sighed. "I said that myself. Tis true, she might gain wisdom in later years, but as Malcolm said, there's no guarantee of that. And if she doesn't… then we could all be putting our fates into the hands of someone who would sooner see us shattered."

The younger warrior winced at these words. The teacher never sugar-coated anything, and stayed right to the point.

"But even so," he remarked. "What you're suggesting… it's… It's never been done before. And what makes you think anyone else will go along with it in the first place, _especially_ the Humans?"

"The Prince has taken everything into account, young one. He assures me that no one will be able to undo what's been done. All that's needed now is yuir decision."

The lavender warrior opened and shut his mouth, his mind a blank. "I… I don't know," he said finally. He honestly didn't know what to think. He had always known that being leader would mean he would have to make difficult decisions and make certain sacrifices that would benefit the clan, but… he had never expected _anything_ like this.

His Mentor looked at him almost sadly. "Lad… I don't need to stress to ye the importance of what yuir decision will be. But there are also other things ye need to consider, things like… what ye will loose, should ye accept."

His former pupil looked at him.

"I know, as do the rest of the clan, that you and the red-headed lass have been lovers now for many a year. I've seen the way ye look at each other. Ye clearly have much devotion for each other, but… Ye do realise that should you go along with this idea, there will be no way that ye can stay with her?"

The clan's young leader stared at him, his eyes moist.

To see him undergo this kind of pressure was heart-wrenching for the old warrior. He had always taught his young warriors to be strong, to remember a Gargoyle's purpose to protect, but never had he once taught them to put their heart on the line. He himself had never gone through a decision like the one the large lavender warrior was being put through. He wondered if he was the best person to offer council?

"What am I to do?" his leader finally asked, almost pleaded with him. "Please, Mentor. You have always been there for me whenever I needed your wisdom. I beg you, don't fail me now. Whatever decision you make, I will obey."

The scarred warrior looked at him in pity. "I'm sorry, lad, but this is a choice that I cannot make for you. Only you can decide, no one else." He turned to make his way back to the castle, but paused for a few moments. "Lad…" he started to say. "Do you know why I chose you to be my Second out of all the ones who participated in the exercises?"

The large warrior looked at him.

"I did so not because of the way ye fight, yuir strength or yuir courage," his Mentor continued. "But because of the way you cared. You have a warm caring heart, young one. Ye think of others before yuirself in a crisis, ye think of only what's best for yuir clan, and ye are ready to accept any challenge that comes yuir way." He turned to look back at him. "Remember what I told you and your siblings the night when you first began your trials for the title of Second… I said that being leader is about putting the welfare of the clan first before anything else. To be willing to do anything, even make the ultimate sacrifice, no matter what because… Because that's just what being a leader is all about."

He looked at him in sympathy. "But saying that, I never expected to put you nor any Gargoyle in this kind of position. You are leader, and therefore it is up to you to make the final choice. You can either go along with this plan or not, lad, but should you be unable to make a decision, then I offer a third option… If you wish, you can step down as leader and I can temporarily take on the lead again until such time when another new leader can be chosen."

"One who will not be afraid to make the decision," his once pupil said almost bitterly.

His Mentor's eyes flared white slightly. "I never said that, lad! Your choice is yuir own. No one will hold it against you, no matter what your decision." He turned to leave again. "Consider your options carefully, but remember… once you've made this decision there's no going back, so choose wisely. Prince Malcolm requires an answer by tomorrow night at the latest. His health diminishes more every second so there's no time to waste."

With that, the old Mentor spread his wings and took flight, his form vanishing into the distance, leaving behind one very troubled and heartbroken Gargoyle behind in his wake.

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A few hours had past and the old Mentor went to see the Prince, finding the Captain already inside, handing him some water to calm his aching throat.

"Have you spoken to him?" Malcolm asked urgently, as his friend entered his bedchamber.

The former clan-leader nodded. "Aye, but as to what his decision will be, only he can answer that. I've given him till tomorrow night to think it over."

"What do you think his choice will be?" the Captain asked.

The scarred warrior shrugged. "Who can say? Tis an awful lot we're asking of the lad. Remember, if he goes through with this, there'll be no going back."

"True," Malcolm winced. "Oh, I wish it had never come to this. I know he is leader now, but he's still so young. You were right in saying it was unfair of us to ask this of him."

"But there is no other choice, My Liege," the Captain added. "We all know what will happen eventually if we don't do this. Their clan will either be subjected to horrendous indecencies and bigotry, or worse shattered by day. At least this way, their clan has a chance of a better life. We all do."

Malcolm nodded. "Aye."

"The way ye both stride to protect my clan honours me more than I can say," the Mentor said gratefully. "But this is far too much. Mayhap we should just forget the whole thing."

"No!" Malcolm said forcefully. "This isn't just about you, old friend, it's also about my kind, my clan… " He then went off into another rage of coughs, forcing the Captain to intervene, patting his back and handing him his water. "No matter what anyone else here says, my clan depend on the protection that you and your clan offer us. If it weren't for you, the Vikings and other such rogues would have ransacked us ages ago. If we didn't have your protection… we'd be open to all sorts of attacks and invasions."

The Mentor stayed silent for a moment and then nodded, accepting the Prince's reasoning.

"What are we to do then, if the lad doesn't go ahead with the plan?" the Captain then asked.

"I've made clear that it is his choice," the Mentor told them. "As leader, if he chooses not to go ahead with it then we must respect and obey his decision. If on the other hand he can't decide, then I told him that I would temporarily take back lead of the clan until another leader could be found."

"But we may not have sufficient time," the Captain said, frustrated.

"I am still here you know, Captain," Malcolm said wryly. "I'm not dead yet, nor am I deaf. I respect my friend's decision, and agree with him to give the young one time to decide."

"But… " the Captain began…

"You need not worry, Captain," a deep voice said behind them.

The three of them turned their sights to the balcony door, which had opened unnoticed during their conversation, revealing the large warrior standing before them.

"Lad…?" the Mentor began.

"I have thought long and hard about what you said, My Mentor," the young leader continued. "Truth be told, I was more than willing to take you up on your offer, to step down and allow someone else to take on the responsibility of that what you are all suggesting. Part of me still wants to take that way out… " He paused, taking in deep slow breathes. "But I did not become leader just to shake off my duties and leave at the first obstacle. I took an oath to protect and serve my clan to the best of my abilities… I cannot back down when it suits me."

His Mentor looked at him with admiration, pride and a little sadness. "Lad… are ye sure?" he asked him finally. "Ye do remember what I said about this decision being final and everything? There's no going back once you decide."

The warrior paused for a few moments, but then finally just nodded. "For the good of the clan, both clans, I am willing."

"Excellent!" Malcolm said, overjoyed. "Come here now, we must make preparations."

"Aye, we must," the Captain added, and then said. "But first things first… We must each take an oath and swear that none of what we are planning leaves these four walls. We can't risk any word of this reaching the Princess nor anyone else, especially the Church. They would never allow anything like this. Agreed?"

The other occupants of the room nodded.

"How will ye deal with the Church?" the Mentor asked. He had never understood why even the King had to answer to the Human's religious sects. Wasn't the king supposed to be the all-ruling one?

Humans were just plain strange sometimes…

"Leave them to me," Malcolm smiled briefly. "I will speak to Brother Edmund. I am certain we can trust him to keep silent. He cares for your clan as much as I do, if not more."

"Very well," the Captain agreed. "But no one else save thy brother the King." He then looked to the clan's young leader. "And secondly… Lad, there is one more thing we should discuss. To do what we are planning, ye will need to have a name of your own… "

The young one looked at him, bewildered. "A name?" he said. "Is that really necessary? My kind has never had names before."

The Captain nodded. "Aye, ye will need it when the time comes." He paused for a moment, looking thoughtful as he stared intently at the large warrior, eyeing his huge size and stature, until a thought suddenly came into his head… "How does the name 'Goliath' suit with you?"

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Over the next few weeks, the two Gargoyles and the Captain met with Prince Malcolm many times. What they discussed was known only between them and nobody else, not even the Prince's own daughter. They had had one meeting with Brother Edmund, the castle's Monk, but even he refused to discuss anything that had been said to him.

During this time, Malcolm's health diminished greatly until finally, after yet another week of harsh pain, he breathed his last…

His death brought on a time of great woe for all of Wyvern, both Human and Gargoyle alike. There was not a single individual at his funeral procession who didn't weep, not even the old Mentor who had only been known to cry once at the death of his mate years ago.

The young Princess had not wanted the Gargoyles anywhere near her father's funeral, but the Captain had convinced her that it would dishonour her father's memory if she didn't allow his greatest friends and allies to attend. Reluctantly, she accepted the Captain's advice and gave them her permission.

With the death of her father, Katherine was to rule Wyvern... Normally, a child would not be allowed to rule so young, even if she was the rightful heir, and usually would have been sent to her next of kin, her uncle King Kenneth, until such time when she was old enough. But the journey to her uncle's home was long, and the land was infested with many such rogues and thieves. Plus, there was no one else to govern the castle, as Wyvern was almost completely isolated from all other main kingdoms.

In the end, it was decided that they would not risk the Princess's safety. So she would remain at Wyvern, but would accept council from her father's most trusted adviser who was of course the Captain of The Guard. He would advise her in all decisions concerning the kingdom until such time when she was old enough to make her own decisions by herself.

As expected, the Princess' first order following her coronation had been to have all the Gargoyles shattered during the day. Fortunately, the Captain had been there to 'kindly' remind her of the promise she had made to her father, to honour the treaty between their respective clans. Grudgingly, she once again relented and chose to honour her father's memory, allowing the clan safe haven.

As for the young leader of the Gargoyle clan, he had decided for some odd reason to go against Gargoyle tradition and take on a name, calling himself 'Goliath'… But what was even more bizarre was that he had chosen to end his relationship, of many years, with his so called beloved Angel of the Night, as he called her.

Every member of the clan had been greatly shocked at this news, as they had all been waiting for them to declare themselves as official mates. In fact, they had been unofficial mates now for several years, and everyone had expected them to make it official once Goliath had chosen his new Second, which again they had expected to be her.

All anyone knew was that one night Goliath had asked to speak to her, and a few moments later she had stormed out after throwing some kind of half-talisman at him, her eyes flaring red and filled with tears.

Every one of Goliath's rookery, including his closest brother, the large aqua-coloured one with the fin-like ears, the two long upright horns and the red chest-armour and wristlets, had hard-pressed him about his decision to end his relationship with her, but all Goliath would say was that he could not talk about it.

Eventually they soon ceased their constant hounding of him, deciding that if he didn't want to tell them what was wrong then it was senseless of them to continue their persecution. After all, Goliath had never been one to make rash decisions before, so he must have a good excuse, even if they couldn't see what it was… Mustn't he?

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**Ten Years Later; 994 A.D.:**

The Viking leader, Hakon, kept close to the walls of the castle, breathing heavily as the sounds of roaring Gargoyles and the frightened screams of his own men echoed in the night.

He paused, attempting to catch his breath…

"_RRRRRRRR…!"_

A low deep growl reached his ears. He turned around, and saw the most hideous and frightening monstrosity he had ever seen.

It looked like something that had been thrown up by the sea, with fish-like ears and skin the colour of ocean-blue… It was half the size of a horse, thick with muscle, jaws that looked like they could crunch right through metal, and gleaming white eyes that sent shivers right through his spine.

The beast snarled and leapt over at him. Hakon barely managed to jump out of its way, as it whooshed right past, leaving clawmarks in the solid stonewall.

He hurried over to the other flight of stairs, only to find another obstacle standing in his way, waiting for him.

A large Gargoyle, not as huge as the lavender one that had awakened right before him, but big enough, with aqua tone skin and ears similar to that of the beast-dog, glared down at him.

"Have at thee, Viking scum!" the Gargoyle snarled, brandishing his halberd, a weapon that was sort of a cross between a spear and a battleaxe, at him.

Hakon gave a snarl of his own, never one for backing down from a challenge, especially when the challenge was given with an insult to his heritage. He roared, striking at the Gargoyle with his sword, but the beast was too fast and cunning for him to anticipate.

The Gargoyle warrior easily avoided the Viking's strikes, dodging from side to side, and blocking his blows with his weapon.

Hakon roared again, as the Gargoyle seemingly lost hold of its halberd as it fell from its grasp, and struck his sword at him…

Unfortunately for Hakon, the Gargoyle had purposely lost hold of its weapon, reassuming his hold on it just as its head neared the warrior's claw. He blocked the Viking's sword with his arm, the blade clinking off the red metal of the wristlet he had on, and with his free arm that held the weapon he shoved his halberd forward, right into Hakon's heart.

Hakon stood still there for a moment, seemingly in shock, blood pouring from his heart, as he coughed and spluttered.

He managed to give one final glare to his opponent, muttering "Miserable… glorified… _pebble_!" before backing away, his sword still in his hand.

"ODIN!" Hakon roared his god's name to the heavens with all his remaining strength. It was the custom in his people, when near death, to yell out the name of their god with a sword in their hand, so that they may enter Valhalla, home of the gods and final resting place for all Vikings.

No sooner had he yelled out the god's sacred name, he fell to the ground dead.

The Gargoyle stood there for a moment, staring at the Viking's corpse, bloody halberd still in his claw. He was puzzled a little by the way Humans sometimes threw themselves into their religion. He knew little of gods, as Gargoyles had never had them. They had faith when they went into battle, or faith in their belief that a Gargoyles duty was to protect, and they believed in Dragons, but as for gods… they knew nothing of.

"Second!" the voice of his leader called out. He looked up just as Goliath landed down on the battlement.

"Tis over," he said. "The Vikings are in retreat. The night is won!"

The aqua Gargoyle nodded, but pointed down to the dead Viking at his feet where even now their watchdog was sniffing at. "What should we do about him?"

Goliath thought for a moment and then shrugged. "Take a small group and carry his body and those of his other fallen warriors to the outskirts of the forest. Leave them where their comrades will find them. They will give them a proper burial and such."

His rookery brother nodded in agreement, and knelt down to pick the Viking's body up…

The aqua-Gargoyle had been made Clan-Second a short time after Goliath had become leader. He had no name, like most of those in the clan preferred, though the Captain of The Guard and Brother Edmund often referred to him as 'Othello', claiming that it suited him.

He was a fine Second, and everyone believed that Goliath had made the right choice in selecting him, although everyone had expected the redheaded female, who had at one time been Goliath's would-be mate, would have acquired the title. Even though she and Goliath were no longer together, she was still the finest warrior in the whole clan.

The break-up had been painful for both of them. Although Goliath still hadn't given an explanation as to why he had ended their relationship, she had accepted his decision, believing he must have had his reasons.

It had been a long, hard and emotional time, but eventually they had resolved their feelings, agreeing once again to merely be comrades-in-arms and rookery siblings. He had even asked her to be Clan-Second, but she had refused, believing it wouldn't be a good idea for them to work so close together. So in the end he decided to go with his closest rookery brother, as he was the next best warrior in the clan and understood Goliath better than even he did sometimes.

As for his former Angel of The Night… She had ended up mating with one of their other rookery brothers, a lean and handsome warrior whom had been a great comfort to her during the break-up. He offered her solace and understanding, giving her comfort whenever she needed it, which she gladly took. They had now been official mates for over seven years, and seemed really happy together…

The rest of the Vikings were now fleeing the castle, as rain after rain of arrows poured down on them from the soldiers up above on the battlements.

"Our arrows make them run!" one soldier yelled excitedly.

"They'll think twice before coming back!" another added.

The Gargoyles all stood together on one of the larger battlements up above, watching the Vikings retreat. Many of them scowled, as they listened to the soldiers bragging on about how _they_ had made the Vikings flee, not them.

"I'd love to see what would happen if there was ever a night when we weren't here and the Vikings came back," a small green Gargoyle with webwings said to his two rookery brothers, a largely overweight aquamarine-coloured Gargoyle and a red one with a long beak.

The three of them had always been together since their hatching, and they were known together simply as 'the Trio' by all their brothers and sisters. None of the clan's children, aside from another group of four youngsters, was as close as these three were.

"Wouldn't we all," the red one smirked.

Goliath stood by at the battlements with his clan, bandaging his own claw, which had been struck by the Viking Hakon's sword right after he had awoken. He listened to his clanmates and the soldiers down below. His face showed no emotion, but inwardly he found himself growing aggravated, too. Each time it was the same… they would save the castle from attack, and the soldiers would fool themselves into thinking that they were the heroes.

He turned around and saw his former Angel together with her mate, tending his wounds, her eyes full of love and concern.

Goliath was happy that his former love had found happiness, but inwardly he couldn't help but feel painful grief whenever he saw the two of them together, knowing that his brother was standing in a place where he should be… at his Night-Angel's side.

"Goliath?" a voice said beside him.

Goliath turned and found the Captain behind him along with his old Mentor, both of them looking concerned.

"We need to speak," the Captain simply told him.

Goliath looked at his Mentor behind him who nodded. "Very well," he said, following them down one of the flights of steps.

"I take it from the look on yuir face that you were listening to what some of those ungrateful whiners were saying down below?" the Captain said gruffly.

Goliath sighed. "Captain, it's nothing," he tried to assure him. "It's only… "

"It is not nothing, Goliath!" the Captain replied hotly. "If it were just them I'd be almost content, but it's not… The Princess is just as bad as they are. Every night when we sit down to dinner, if I make even one small remark about you or your clan she rebukes me by telling me, and I quote, 'don't mention those monster's names in my presence.'"

Goliath groaned. "Perhaps, but… "

"Perhaps nothing, Goliath," the Captain looked at him seriously. "We all hoped it wouldn't come to this, but it has."

Goliath's eyes widened a little at what the Captain was saying, and looked to his former leader for help, but only saw confirmation in his old Mentor's eyes.

"Surely you're overreacting just a… " he began.

"Lad," the Captain said in a serious tone. "There's no point in beating about the bush any longer. We have to face it… it's time. We all agreed that we would wait as long as we did to see if the Princess would get any wiser in her later years. That has obviously not happened. You know now what we must do."

Goliath swallowed, and looked once again to his Mentor.

"He speaks the truth, lad," his Mentor replied. "We all knew this night would come, though we all hoped it wouldn't."

Goliath groaned, feeling his world coming to an end, but remembered the wise words of his Mentor, 'A leader puts the welfare of his clan first before anything else.'

"Let's go and get it over with then," he said finally.

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The Captain entered the Great Hall, as all the soldiers sat down for the evening meal, laughing and joking around, talking about the battle as though they had won it all by themselves. He came up close to his seat at the end of the table on the right, passing by two soldiers as he did so.

"_I don't mind telling you, I thought we were all under the sword there for a while,"_ one said to the other.

"_Aye, a fine soldier is our Captain of The Guard,"_ the other replied.

The first soldier snorted. "_Captain of the __**Gargoyles**__ ye mean." _

"_He'd fit right well on the cornices with them, it's a fact."_ The two of them laughed.

The Captain sought hard to control his temper, wanting to draw his sword and run those arrogant fools through, but kept his anger in check. He knew that tonight was not the night for loosing control, and carried on seemingly to his seat.

"Our thanks for a battle well fought, good Captain," the Princess said graciously, smiling as he came near her.

"The credit is not mine to take, Your Highness," the Captain said honestly, as he came nearer her. "Without Goliath and his Gargoyles, our defence would have proven useless."

The Princess lost her smile, scowling at the Gargoyle leader's name. "Please," she said. "Don't mention that monster's name in my presence."

'Oh aye,' the Captain thought miserably. 'This is certainly going to be _a lot_ of fun tonight.'

The main doors suddenly banged open, revealing the Gargoyle in question, together with his old Mentor, the former leader with the scarred eye…

Katherine's face flared up a little at the sight of the old warrior, fighting hard to keep control of her own temper, and her fear of the large creatures.

"Your pardon, Your Highness," the Captain said, approaching her at the head of the table. "I took the liberty of asking them to appear this evening."

The Princess looked at him mildly in shock, but mostly in outrage. "Captain," she almost cried out. "We are most seriously displeased! To allow beasts in the dining hall… "

"Begging your pardon, Your Highness," the Captain continued. "But the reason why I asked them here is not because of the battle tonight… but in an official capacity."

She looked at him briefly in wonder, but rarely took her eyes off the huge mountain of muscle heading her way. "What do you mean?" she asked.

'This should be interesting,' the Captain thought, and added out loud. "Years ago, your father, Prince Malcolm may he rest in peace, sought to ensure the longevity of the peace treaty between our two clans, Human and Gargoyle. He wanted to make sure that the Gargoyles would be well looked after long after he had departed to the grave."

Katherine's hands shivered a little from the talk of her father. "My father was a noble man and a great ruler," she said. "But everyone knew he tended to spend a little too much time with… _them_." She glared at Goliath who only replied her look with a calm one.

"That's because he understood their importance to us," the Captain replied, and at Katherine's hard look, which suggested she was about to say more, he quickly continued. "Your Highness, I meant what I said just now about how useless our defence would have been if not for Goliath's clan. And today has just been the latest example in a long list of battles over the years. During that time, Goliath's clan has aided and saved us from all manner of enemies… the Archmage, Vikings, neighbouring hostile kingdoms, bandits and even some rogue Gargoyles. Yes, they even fought against their own kind to save _us_."

Katherine showed no response, but remained sitting very still on her throne.

"Your father knew how important their protection was to us and our home," the Captain explained. "That was the main reason why he took extra special care of the treaty, hoping that one day our two clans would be united as one… " He paused for a moment, sighing deeply. "But… sadly that has not come to be." He looked up at the Princess with a hard but still respectful look in his eyes. "Your own misguided hatred and prejudice for Goliath's clan has caused your father's treaty to crumble."

Katherine stared at him in indignation. "How dare you!" she said. "You dare accuse me of betraying my father's memory?"

"Nay," the Captain shook his head. "But your father did."

Katherine paused at the Captain's words.

"When your father was on his deathbed," the Captain explained sadly. "He finally had enough time on his hands to see what kind of a girl you had grown up into. He saw the way you acted around the clan, the way ye scowled whenever he mentioned them in front of you… It didn't take a genius to know ye had issues with them."

"You're walking on dangerous ground, Captain," Katherine almost hissed at him, but deep down his words were cutting into her like a cold blade, as he spoke of her father and how she was dishonouring his memory by abusing the treaty.

"Your father only wanted peace and security for Castle Wyvern," the Captain went on. "Not just for us, but also for Goliath's clan… but especially he wanted our two clans to be united as one people." He looked at Katherine. "But when he finally saw and accepted what kind of a girl you had become, he knew that was impossible, at least not if you were allowed to rule… "

"What?" Katherine looked up at these words.

The Captain stuck out his chin, as he prepared to give his last statement. 'This is it,' he thought…

"Your father knew that if you took the throne," the Captain stated. "The Gargoyles would know nothing but bigotry and contempt, despite all that they do for us… He feared that in time the clan would rebel and choose to leave, letting us fend on our own. He knew that we wouldn't stand a chance if they were to do that even if no one else did. And even if we could, the Gargoyles deserve a whole lot better than to be treated as dogs!"

The Captain stared hard at her and then at the crowd of curious onlookers sitting around him.

"Before I say anything else, I would like to make point that everything I'm about to say has been ordered by his late Highness, Prince Malcolm, and agreed with his brother King Kenneth. He wrote all his wishes down on paper, on his last will and testament, which I now possess. Further more, everyone in Castle Wyvern is henceforth ordered never to reveal anything of what I'm about to say outside our castle's walls. No one outside our kingdom is to know of tonight's revelation… "

Katherine glared at the Captain, her frustration grown beyond control. "What wishes, Captain? And what _revelation_?"

The Captain turned back to look at her, his face showing no emotion, but just common courtesy and honour of duty. "His wish…" he proclaimed to all in the Great Hall. "…That you would henceforth be betrothed to he who is now leader of the Gargoyle clan… _Goliath_!"

Katherine's jaw dropped and her eyes widened, as she just stared at the Captain in unbelievable shock, while the rest of the room erupted into a chorus of outraged disbelief...

"_What? Impossible!" _

"_No Human could ever possibly marry a __**Gargoyle**__!" _

"_This is outrageous and God damn unnatural, that's what it is!" _

The Captain held the Princess's stare, as the chaos and commotion carried on around them. He then turned to the Gargoyle leader, indicating him to come closer.

"Your Highness," he said in an official manner. "Allow me to officially introduce Goliath… _your husband to be_."

**To Be Continued… **


	2. Chapter 2

_**All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company.  
No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder.  
All original characters are the property of Storyseeker and Hardwing.**_

_**This story was co-written with the great author Hardwing! Many thanks!**_

_**This fic saga is set in an alternate universe, in Wyvern's past, with characters from the Dark Ages Saga in TGS and some of Hardwing's own characters. It starts off right after the events shown in the show's episode 'Long Way To Morning' in 984 A.D. where the events in that chapter lead to a different conclusion for the clan. It is also set in the same timeline as the show in that era, with one small difference… and that's Goliath didn't get his name until just after 984 A.D.**_

_**Oh, and in case some people get offended at some of the sexist remarks in this saga… Please remember that it is set in the medieval ages.**_

_**Many thanks to the following websites for all their helpful knowledge, to Kimberly Towle for her suggestions, and to the author Aesop for all his proofreading…**_

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**Scotland; Castle Wyvern; 994 A.D.: **

The whole Hall seemed alive with eager chatter, as the Humans talked and argued amongst themselves. Yet, unlike minutes before when they had been celebrating _their_ glorious victory over the raiding north-men, this time the voices were filled with shock and anger.

As like the centre of a tornado, the stark contrast of relative peace consisted between the Princess and the Magus on one side, and the Captain of The Guard and Goliath on the other.

The Princess was still trying to overcome her shock of the Captain's story, while the Magus on the other hand was quick to raise his voice…

"This is the _gravest_ offence!" he accused the Captain, giving the Gargoyle beside him a short glared look. "You dare to propose that the Princess marry such a savage beast!"

"You are right, Magus," the Princess agreed, having regained her voice as the Hall slowly became silent again. "Even if you speak the truth, we will not agree! While I do wish to respect and to honour my father's memory, his last days were plagued by a heavy poison, which for certain had reached his mind, making his decisions vague and no doubt weakened his will against… _less favourable advice_."

The last words came out as pure venom, as the Princess eyed the Captain. 'They let him die, and now they make a profit out of it,' she thought. 'Never!'

"I can assure you this was not the case, Your Highness," the Captain responded, his lips a small line as he held them together to hold his anger in check.

"The King and the Holy Church will never allow such a..." the Princess stuttered "… an _abominable_ act against God to take place!"

"They already have," the Princess's future-husband broke his silence, though he spoke not with a bemused tongue. In fact, he had seemed almost completely emotionless throughout this entire fiasco since it had started.

Katherine glared at Goliath, as the last chatter in the room had suddenly died away. While Goliath merely replied her cold glare with a calm neutral stare of his own.

"He speaks the truth," the Captain concurred. "Prince Malcolm and his Majesty King Kenneth II held contact through letters before the Prince's death, and although the King was not pleased with his Highness's intention, he agreed with his brother's wish and swore it would come to be. For in his own kingdom the Prince's word would forever be law, just as his brother had sworn to him years before, and the King never breaks a vow…_ever_."

"The Church... " the Princess began.

"…Will not be concerned with this topic," the Captain stopped her. "As third person outside these walls, the Prince trusted good Brother Edmund with his wishes. Brother Edmund served the Church for many loyal years before coming to Wyvern, and has happily agreed to fulfil his Highness's last wish by performing the wedding."

"Even a Monk can not perform a marriage against the will of the Church!" the Princess renewed her point.

"Aye, but he can perform _a_ marriage," the middle-aged Human explained with barely hidden amusement. "And once that is done, he will then send a letter as endorsement that he married the Princess of Wyvern to one of her _warriors_ here, which is no lie. There should be no problems with thatquarter, consideringhow infrequent visits from Church officials are."

Maybe it was the amusement she heard in his voice, or perhaps her own realisation that there truly was no way out for her from this betrothal now, but whatever it was that befell her, it made the Princess's pulse run wild and caused her to throw her silver goblet down on the floor mere inches from the Captain's feet. But even this didn't help to calm her, as she glared at the calm faces of the beast and her disloyal subject.

"How dare ye?" the young ruler of Wyvern shouted, forgetting for a moment to use the proper high-class language engrained into her from early childhood, speaking in her natural Scottish tongue, her voice high with anger. "We would rather die than to become this _monster's_ wife!"

Beside him at the tables, the Captain could hear murmurs coming from some of his higher soldiers, and he didn't need to hear it to realise that they were talking about taking the Princess's side, and preferably his post, even if that meant blood on their swords.

'Damned vermin,' the old warrior thought, and then sighed. 'It's now or never...'

"This arrangement was approved by the King," the Captain added. "And should you refuse to accept it, then know that in doing so you will be disobeying a direct order of your father, one that he signed with THE ROYAL SEAL OF WYVERN!"

With these words the Captain held up the Prince's last will and testament, which he had been carrying on his person the whole time, so that everyone in the room could see it, not just because he wanted them to, but because he needed them to as well.

"Even in death the Prince, as your father, has the right to marry you off to whomsoever he chooses. And by signing his choice with the Royal Seal, he has made it law. If you choose not to go ahead with the marriage, then by doing so you will loose your birthright as Princess of Wyvern forever!"

Silence prevailed once again.

Although most, if not all, of the gathered Humans were ready to protest against the words of a long dead Prince that were being spoken by a man not highly respected… The knowledge that the Seal of Wyvern validated all this however was another story, as anything that had been signed by the Royal Seal of Wyvern was therefore law. Not even the Princess could deny that, at least not without consequences.

Princess Katherine knew this best of all.

For a long time she stared on the paper of the scroll with the red wax Seal at the bottom, its sight almost burning her eyes. Then she closed her eyes for a moment, as though to be released from this image.

Her very soul was even now shouting at her to continue spurning the Captain's ridiculous proclamation to take on a Gargoyle as her husband. It was a voice she very much wanted to listen to, but if she did… then what would become of her then?

Even if she had all of Scotland agreeing with her… To go against the will and wishes of her own father, even if he were now deceased, would still be a sin. For it was every daughter's place in this world to listen, obey and respect their father's every word. Even those of royal blood were no exception to this. And since her father had made this betrothal official by using the Royal Seal, she would be breaking the law of Wyvern by refusing his command. In doing so she would not only loose her honour and respect, but also her birthright and everything with it...

She would no longer be ruler of Wyvern, nor would she even be a Princess. She would not even have any family, for by loosing her birthright she would also loose any connection she had with her kin. It was a strict law, especially for Royalty and Nobility. She would be an outcast, shunned by all in her class.

'Damned if I do and damned if I don't,' she thought bitterly. If she did refuse then she would be an outcast and loose everything, and if she accepted then in a way she would still be shunned. For she doubted that many of the Nobles around Scotland would want to come visit a Princess who had an animal for a husband.

She fought back a tear threatening to escape her eye, her thoughts ablaze.

"We submit us under the wish of our father," the Princess gave in with a pressed voice, looking angrily at the Captain and then lastly at Goliath. "Under the law of Wyvern… we will marry thee."

A loud storm of protest broke loose, as the rest of the Humans stood up in anger and disgust. The Magus meanwhile just stared at the Princess in shock, his mouth uttering silent words…

"Princess…?" he whispered, but she would not return his look, as she just turned and walked out of the Great Hall, not even sparing him nor her future-husband a glance.

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**One Hour Later: **

In a distant corner of the courtyard, far away from where the refugees had made camp while awaiting the Vikings to leave their shores thus make their land secure again, a large group of the clan had gathered to discuss the recent events...

"This is total madness!" a male elder exclaimed. "A mating between a Human and one of us... Have you ever heard of such a thing before? It's unnatural!"

Several of the clan agreed.

"You can't call it mating anyhow. What is it for? Hatchlings? Love?" a female elder joined in, irritated. "It is just a Human form of agreement."

"Which should improve our lives greatly," the clan's storyteller threw in.

"This has yet to be proven," the female elder replied. "I can't see how some words written down, even by the late Prince, could protect us during the day."

Some metres away, still in ear reach, a smaller group had gathered together. The group consisted of Othello the Clan-Second, his mate Desdemona who was a beautiful Gargess with deep-orange skin and unusually split wings, a beaked Gargoyle named Thersities with two large horns, one of which was slightly malformed, and Goliath's former Night-Angel, the azure-skinned and redheaded beauty.

The latter of them was leaning against a wall while the other siblings stood around, her face unreadable.

Although none of the clan, except for Goliath, had an _official_ name that they used constantly, like a Human, Brother Edmund had named most of them in his journals, which he had done so only to ease his agonising confusion in trying to identify them when writing about them in his entries.

"Sooo... finally our leader has found someone," Thersities joked. "Is anyone else burning to see their mating flight?"

The silence that emitted on this was in a way more louder than any battle-cry, but near the red-haired sister it was almost tangible.

"Well, at least this gives an explanation as to why he has never chosen a mate," Desdemona noticed, eyeing her sister watchfully, remembering very well the state she had been in the night Goliath had broken up with her. "It is just… They shouldn't have kept it secret for so long... This wasn't fair to the clan."

"Our beautiful sister is right," a smooth voice added. "This is serious indeed, and quite a disrespect for the clan's trust in him."

The siblings looked around and saw Iago, another one of their siblings,coming over to them from whatever dark corner he must have been hiding in to listen in on their was a light brown-skinned and black-haired male with a sly look about him, something that he was _all_ about and nothing the exception of their late brother Roland, a renegade Gargoyle and former leader of the Bandits, Iago was the next worst troublemaker in the whole clan.

He had recently been banished for inciting a fight between Goliath and Othello by _suggesting_ that there had been some sort of romance going on between the Clan-Leader and Desdemona. It hadn't been true of course, they all soon realised this, but not before Othello had given Goliath a darkened eye and several bruises on his skin. After they had all calmed down and realised the truth, that Iago had masterminded the whole situation just so that he could have an attempt at claiming Desdemona as his mate, their sly brother had been banished from the clan until the next full moon. That had ended one week ago, and he had rather unfortunately returned.

Iago had always had an unhealthy obsession with the Clan-Second's mate, even when they had been hatchlings. Before she had finally chosen Othello to be her other half, Iago had been obsessed with her and wouldn't stop pestering her every minute of the night by trying to woo her and convince her that he was the best in the clan for her. Even after she and Othello became official mates, he seemingly never ceased to leave her alone.

"I didn't say..." Desdemona began, frustrated by his turning of her words. Iago had always had a talent for that, almost constantly causing trouble because of it.

"Oh, but it is," her dark rookery brother noted with an all too wide a smile while turning to her mate. "Shouldn't the Second address this point to the leader?"

"I don't need you to tell me my duties!" Othello growled on him, causing Desdemona to lay a claw on his right shoulder. "Besides, his plan works!"

"This has yet to be seen," Iago replied politely, and something in his eyes told Desdemona that he hoped for quite the opposite. "I bet she will have him destroyed during the day, claiming it to be a accident."

'He truly hopes that,' Desdemona thought more than slightly shocked. 'Why did he have to come back after his banishment?'

She had always believed in second chances and never holding a grudge, but with Iago… He had had more chances than she could count, and his continued presence was forever a constant torment for her.

When he had been banished, she had secretly hoped that he would never return so that she would be free of him at long last. Alas though, the night when his exile had come to an end he had returned, much to her distress. She had almost hoped that Goliath would turn him away, forbidding him from ever coming home, but she knew that could not be so. For that was not the Gargoyle way.

Whenever a Gargoyle did wrong, they were tried and often banished from their clan for a certain amount of time. At the end of their exile it was their choice whether to return or not. If they did return then by law and tradition, justice had been served and no word of their past misdeeds would ever be spoken of again, allowing them all the chance for a fresh start.

Having to turn from the sight of her brother, she turned around to see Thersities and... she noticed that her flame-haired sister had left silently, catching a last glance of her vanishing into one of the castle's towers, probably awaiting the arrival of her mate.

At least that was what she thought…

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"Is all this really necessary?" Goliath growled in frustration, as tailor after tailor took his measurements and placed seemingly endless layers of cloth on him.

The tailors did not answer at first, mostly because they were sheer terrified of the large lavender beast in their midst.

"I-I-I-I'm afraid so… your… " the first tailor stuttered helplessly, not knowing what to call the Gargoyle. It hadn't been that long ago when he had simply referred to him and his kind as beasts and monsters, but since this one was now marrying their Princess… what were they, or more precisely this one, to be called now?

"Sir," the second tailor added in helpfully. "A couple only marry once in their lifetime, so it is customary for both the bride and groom to look their best."

Goliath grumbled, as he shifted uncomfortably in his new outfit. He was unused to wearing so much attire.

They had fitted him with long lengths of white cloth, covering his bulging-muscular arms, legs and masculine chest. Because of his huge size and stature, it was proving to be difficult to make ready an outfit for him by tonight.

The Captain had insisted that the wedding take place immediately, as he was almost certain that if they waited too long then the Princess would surely find a way to ruin everything.

Goliath groaned, as one tailor took the measurements of his arm again. He knew that his marriage to Princess Katherine was bound to mean certain changes in his life, but he certainly hadn't considered this.

Gargoyles weren't exactly known for wearing much in the form of garments, with the exception of the aged who tended to be more sensitive to the cold as they got older. The most that Goliath had ever worn in his entire life had been a loincloth. When the tailors had requested that he remove it, his only response had been a long stare at them, to which they replied by nervously backing off in fear.

"Is this going to take much longer?" Goliath asked in exasperation.

"Why?" a voice said behind him. "Can you not wait to take your intended?"

Goliath froze for a moment, and then sighed, turning around to see his former would-be mate standing at the doorway.

"Greetings, my lo… my sister," he quickly corrected himself. No matter how many times he saw her, each time he did the first words to come from his mouth was to call her 'his love'.

"Leave us!" the redheaded Gargoyle ordered, eyeing the tailors distastefully.

The tailors were more than inclined to obey her, as they had wanted nothing more than to leave the room since they had seen who was to be their new Prince. They hurried out of the room, not even sparing a moment to remove some of the needles from the cloth on Goliath's outfit.

Goliath stood where he was, staring at the once love of his life. He wanted to talk to her, but could not find the words to speak.

"Well?" she asked finally.

"Well what?"

His former Angel's eyes flared red, as she glared at him. "_Well_, why are I and the clan the last to know of your impending mateship? Why did you not tell me that you had overthrew me because you had your eyes set on that brat of a Princess? And why are you doing this in the _first place_?"

Goliath felt his heart break. The words she spoke with filled with rage, but her eyes, though glowing with the lights of the fires of Hell, were filled with tears. He had hurt her more than even he could have imagined.

"My Angel," he called her by her old nickname, one he hadn't used in years, but felt he had to. "I am sorry… "

"_You're sorry_?" she snarled. "I'm the one who's sorry!" Her voice grew louder with each word. "I loved you, Goliath! Even long after I accepted your decision to end our relationship, I still kept the dream of hope alive that one night you and I would be reunited, even after my new mate and I came to be! And all the time you were longing for the night when you would bed Wyvern's Princess!"

Goliath's own eyes suddenly flared. "That's not how it was!" he declared angrily. "Believe me, I am sorry for the way I have treated you, but I had no choice."

"How could you not tell me?" some of her rage had gone from her voice, replaced with the sound of choked sobs. "I begged you to tell me what was wrong, why you had stopped loving me. But you wouldn't tell me, not even give me a hint."

Goliath blinked back a tear threatening to spill from his own eye. "I was sworn to secrecy," he explained, "by our Mentor, the Captain and Prince Malcolm. They did not want anyone needlessly to find out what we were planning."

"_I_ had no need to know?" she looked at him almost in shock. "Out of everyone you knew, and everyone you have known since our youth, how could _I_ have not been told? You once said to me you would never hold anything back from me. What changed?"

Goliath sighed. "Because… " he paused, his heart feeling like it was splitting in two. "Yes, you're right. I did promise you I would never hold anything from you, and I am being a coward for not telling you the whole truth… " He took a deep breath. "I didn't tell you because… Partly because I was a coward, and partly because… I couldn't be certain you could be trusted."

His redheaded sister stared at him.

"They swore me to secrecy, yes that is true," he continued to explain. "But even if they did, I would have gladly broke my vow to try sparring you any pain. But… the truth is I know you, and I knew how much hurt you would be in when I ended our relationship. And like you usually do when you or any of our sisters are hurt, you would have run to one of our sisters for comfort, to talk to. In your emotional state, you could have revealed all to them… I couldn't take that chance, and neither could our Mentor or the others."

"So you just left me wondering all these years," she said bitterly. "Leaving me to constantly think that I had said something, done something truly terrible to have made you hate me so."

Goliath moved toward her, but stayed back at the heated glare thrown his way. "If I made you feel that way then I am truly sorry, Angel," he said honestly. "I wish I could go back and do it differently, found some other way to spare you the pain… but I can't."

"Why was it so important for all this to remain secret?"

"If any word had got to the Church, they would have no doubt ceased the whole thing. Prince Malcolm and the Captain made sure that no one else besides they, Brother Edmund, the King, myself and our Mentor knew the secret. And we all shared a pact never to tell anyone until tonight when the betrothal was revealed."

The azure-skinned warrior snorted in disgust, her eyes still watering.

They remained that way for a few minutes, Goliath looking down in shame while his former Angel just glared hatefully at him. After a few moments she finally asked… "Why are you doing it?"

Goliath looked up. "Why am I doing what?"

She gave him a stupid look. "To start with, why are you wearing that glorified bedsheet over you? But most important of all, why are you going through this ridiculous farce of a mateship?"

Goliath sighed. "For our clan, that is why?"

His sister and former would-be mate stared at him. "How exactly does this help our clan, you bedding a Human female?"

Goliath growled a little at her choice of words, but chose to ignore them. "The Princess is rightful ruler of this castle, but when I am her husband, by Human law, I will rule. It was Prince Malcolm's wish that we be wed because he thought I could teach her humility."

"_Humility_?"

Goliath nodded. "Yes. I know you know what she is like, Night-Angel. You above all have tried many a time to convince us of the kind of woman that she is… spoilt, ungrateful and truly hateful towards our kind."

"So you've finally seen the light, eh?" she scoffed almost in humour.

Goliath shrugged his massive shoulders. "I saw the light, as ye put it, many years ago. I just wasn't willing to admit it, because deep down I feared what would happen when she came to power. It was only when our Mentor came to me with his and the Prince's betrothal plan that I finally awoke to myself."

"But why did you ever agree to it?" she asked in desperation. "You don't really think you can change her just because the two of you will each have to wear a ring on your talon and finger for the rest of your lives, do you?"

"Perhaps not," Goliath admitted. "But even if she never learns to accept us, or me… By Human law, our marriage will crown me as the new Prince of Wyvern. Since there is very little likelihood that the two of us will ever produce an heir together, then when I die the throne will pass down to my next of kin, which will be the new leader of our clan. Hence our clan will be the new and official rulers of this castle. Not even the King or Church will be able to change that."

"And do you really think the Humans of this castle are going to accept that?" she hissed. "Do you honestly believe they will ever accept a Gargoyle as their new Prince? What makes you think they will not simply shatter your head off when next you sleep?"

"The Captain and Brother Edmund will see to it that I am unharmed," Goliath revealed. "And the King has already been made aware of the situation. He and Prince Malcolm contacted each other regularly, and the Prince told him his plans. Although reserved at first, the King agreed with his brother's wishes. For he originally gave Prince Malcolm this Kingdom to rule as he saw fit, which he promised he would allow him to do so till his dying day. And the King has yet to ever break a vow, especially one to his own kin. If word ever got out that I, his niece's betrothed, had been harmed, King Kenneth would not rest till justice was done."

"You really believe that?" his sister stared at him unbelievably.

Goliath nodded. "If the Prince, the Captain and Brother Edmund all swear to it, then yes I believe them."

The flame-haired warrior sighed, rubbing her forehead as though in pain. Goliath made to move closer toward her, but she quickly backed up, holding her claw out to him.

"Well, I hope you and your new Human mate are very happy together, _My Leader_," she swore at him, making Goliath chew his lower lip in heartache. She had never once referred to him as her 'leader', not even after they had parted ways. In their whole lives together, she had called him her brother, friend, lover and comrade in arms… but never once had she called him leader, not even after he had been made so.

If ever there was a sign that she had now truly got over him… then that was it.

She turned her head, making her way to the door to leave, but paused just as she reached the doorhandle…

"Tell me something," she requested, not bothering to turn her head back to him. "Did you willingly decide to sell yourself as husband to the Princess? Was the notion of being Prince too great for you to pass up?"

Goliath watched her from behind, his eyes only flaring slightly at her words.

"Not at first," he admitted. "When our Mentor first told me the plan, I was all against it. I wanted to decline and forget all about it, wanting only to spend my nights with you."

"Then what happened?"

Goliath sighed. "Our Mentor reminded me why in the beginning I chose to become Clan-Second and later Leader. It wasn't for the influence or power of position, like some of our siblings preferred, but because I genuinely cared for and wanted to protect and do good for our clan that I chose to be. By marrying myself to the Princess, I can assure a good and hopeful future for our clan, the best that any of us have dared hope for in many a long year."

"And you have never regretted it, I suppose?" she said almost accusingly.

"Of course I have!" Goliath rebuked. "There isn't a night or even a single moment that goes by when I don't constantly think about all that I have sacrificed, all that I have lost! But even if I had the chance to do it all over again, I would not change anything save for the way I hurt you. Because, like it or not, my once beloved… this farce, as ye call it, is our clan's only hope for a better future. And you know that!"

The two of them stayed silent after that for another few moments, Goliath wanting very much to go over and comfort her, but knowing better to stay back while his ex-love stayed where she was, claw on the doorhandle, not turning around.

"I cannot forgive you," she said finally, as her claw slowly twisted the doorhandle. "Not everything you put me through, I just can't. Even after all this time, despite that I am now with another whom I love and adore, and have borne an egg with… it still hurts." Goliath hung his head in shame, his heart close to shattering, as she opened the door. "But… I do understand," she added.

Goliath looked at her.

"As ye said," she continued. "I know better than any in our clan of the hatred and contempt the Humans show for us. And I know you have always put the safety and well being of our clan before anything else in your life. So if you think this joining of you and the Princess can bring hope to our clan again, I will object no longer." She stood there, seemingly frozen. "I only hope it was worth it, Goliath." She said finally, as she continued walking out the room.

"As do I," he said, watching her fleeting form disappear down the long corridors of Castle Wyvern, out of his sight, and his once Angel leaving him for good.

0000000000

**Two Hours Later: **

Meanwhile, at the other side of the castle, another would-be couple was having their own heated discussion…

"How can you even consider about consenting to this…. this _travesty_?" the Magus beseeched his Princess.

Katherine stood behind the veil curtains, listening to her adviser as the royal fitters adjusted her wedding gown, the same gown that her mother had worn at her own wedding.

"Do you think I am actually enjoying this, Magus?" she hissed. "Do you not think that I would rather have my own eyes gouged out rather than commit myself to a… a _beast_?" She shuddered. "I cannot believe my own father has done such a thing. How could he have willingly given consent for his own daughter to be a bride to a Gargoyle? It's hideous, unnatural and an insult to God! I only pray the lord takes mercy on my father's soul for committing such a sin, and mine for going through with it."

"You don't have to go through with it," the Magus insisted, speaking through the curtain. "Just tell them you have changed your mind and you refuse. The whole of Wyvern will be behind you."

Katherine blinked back the tears, refusing to cry any longer. She had already wept for over an hour, ceasing only so that the fitters could perform their task, as the Captain had insisted that the marriage take place immediately, as it had all been arranged with Brother Edmund.

'Brother Edmund,' Katherine thought. She had never been quite sure on what to make of him. Her father had certainly considered him a close friend. He had always been good to her, and was very wise as a man of the Church. The only thing that had stopped her from respecting him completely had been his friendship with the Gargoyles. He had tried time and time again to get her to meet with them willingly, to befriend them, but each time she had refused openly.

She had once visited with him regularly as a child, but his constant meetings with various Gargoyles had brought an end to her visits. She no longer had anything much to do with him and rarely saw him, even around the Castle. The only time when she had anything to do with the old Monk was during chapel on Sundays, and even then they rarely spoke.

One thing was for certain though, and that was her opinion on him had definitely been lowered now, seeing as he had been involved in her secret betrothal from the start, and was even now going to be performing the ceremony himself.

"I cannot," she announced finally, her voice choking as she did so. "Even with all of Wyvern, or even all of Scotland behind me, I could never live down the memory that I had betrayed my father's memory, and worse yet the law of my own Kingdom."

"But, Princess…" the Magus begged.

"No one is above the law," Katherine recited the words her father had taught to her from birth, "especially those with Royal blood. For each law must apply to those both high and low, rich or poor, or else they are not laws at all. If I betray the oath I have taken, to watch over my father's Kingdom and uphold the law of Wyvern, then I am no better than those I am sworn to protect my Kingdom from."

"But those laws said nothing about you being forced to marry a monster!"

Katherine released a single tear from her eye, blinking the rest back. "My father chose for me… a _husband_ for me to marry. I may not agree with his decision, but it was his right to choose and I must live with it. He even sealed his wishes with the Seal of Wyvern, which makes it law. No matter what my feelings are, I must obey."

"No, I cannot accept this!" the Magus said furiously. "There's got to be a way out of this!"

"If you have a plan, I would very much like to hear it, my friend," Katherine said, stepping out from behind the veil, as the fitters finished their final touch.

The Magus paused in his outrage, breathing in as he viewed the wondrous sight in front of him.

"Princess," he exhaled. "By all the stars in the sky, you look… enchanting."

Katherine smiled a little. "A good choice of words for a sorcerer," she said, referring to his 'enchanting' part. She twirled around, showing off the gown that had once been her mothers.

"Your mother would be very proud to see you dressed as such," the Magus assured her.

Katherine's expression fell then. "Somehow I do not think she would be proud if she knew what it was being used for." She walked over to the small mirror at the dressing table, eyeing herself… All vanity aside, she was the living incarnation of the perfect bride. The fitters had done well with their sewing.

And yet… there was nothing more she desired now than to tear all the fabric from her body and burn it all in the fireplace.

She stared around the room that had been hers her entire life, knowing that after tonight she would have to get used to sharing it with a monster.

She felt her stomach turn and ache, as she looked around, imagining what it was going to be like after tonight… She thought about waking up every morning and finding a stone statue at her balcony-doors from where she had watched the sun rose and fall every day. The flowers that always decorated her room would now probably be removed, leaving only the stench of stone and old leather that always seemed to follow Gargoyles wherever they went. And the old oak chair where her old nursemaid had once sat, she now pictured a large, lavender giant sitting in it, assuming if it could even take his weight…

The last thought about her nursemaid gave her pause… 'Could it be possible?' she thought in fear. 'No, surely not… But what if… Could there ever be a chance that the beast and I… could possibly… _conceive_?'

There had never been a case of a Human and Gargoyle bearing a child together, that was true, but then again there had never been a case of such a couple ever occurring before either, so who was to say it wasn't possible?

Frightening visions played through Katherine's mind, as she saw pictures of herself lying in her bed, great with child, screaming as she gave birth, only for it to turn out to be… a small infant version of Goliath, squirming and snarling in a horrified midwife's arms.

"Magus," she pleaded. "We have to find a way out of this for me, we must!"

The Magus took her in his arms. "We will, I promise," he swore to her. "We will find a way to release you from your forced matrimony bonds. This I swear to thee!"

Just then, a knock sounded on the door…

"Your Highness?" the Captain's voice sounded through. "It's time… "

0000000000

**The Great Hall:**

The Great Hall was the centre of what probably was the greatest, but for certain the most strangest happening in the lives of most of the people present... which were rather few since, except the Humans who because of their positions could not afford to not be present, most of them preferred to excuse themselves while such a sinful act was being committed.

But there were even fewer Gargoyles, and most of them preferred to watch from the shadows of the windows because there was only so many guests that the Hall could take, and because not everyone had wanted to come. A lot of the clan had remained behind, preferring to stick with their duties.

A few of the elders and those of Goliath's generation had come of course, as it was expected of them, and Goliath was their leader and rookery brother after all. But mostly there were just a few Gargoyles of the younger generation like the Trio, some of their siblings, and even some of the generation after them who were watching silently and definitely interested.

The Trio had been just on their way to spend the evening in the courtyard, playing with one of the watchdogs, but when they heard the news about Goliath and Katherine, they had absolutely insisted on coming.

In the centre of the interest stood the soon to be married couple… Goliath, at Brother Edmund's right, who stood visibly uncomfortable in the clothes that had been practically thrust upon him by the castle's tailors, with his Mentor and Second by his side. And the Princess Katherine stood next to the Monk's left, with the Magus near her, wearing the pink and purple gown that her mother had worn years before.

"... means a marriage is not just a promise to spend the rest of their lives together, but a joining of two hearts," Edmund explained. "We can so proudly... "

'Can't he just stop?' the Princess thought with dismay and anger, as the whole ceremony with all its words of holy matrimony, sanctity and love seemed like such a farce.

The Monk had skipped the part with the exchange of rings, as there was no ring big enough to fit on Goliath's talon. The Captain and Brother Edmund had been a little concerned about that, as usually the exchange of tokens was vital for the seal of marriage. However, Goliath had assured them both that he would take care of it later. So they had been satisfied with just the exchange of vows.

"Do you, Goliath, take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife, to honour her and protect her for as long as you both shall live?" Edmund finally asked.

"I do," the large Gargoyle confirmed, his face a total blank.

"And do you, Katherine, take this _warrior_ to be your lawful wedded husband, to honour him and serve him for as long as you both shall live?" the Monk repeated to the Princess.

Two seconds passed in which the Princess looked into the face of her soon-to-be husband for the first time during the whole ceremony.

"_I do_," she spat out into the face of what was now her husband with a glare of unconcealed hatred.

"Then by the power invested within me I now pronounce you husband and wife," Edmund announced, his light tone concealing any knowledge of the Princess's hard one. "You may kiss the bride."

The whole hall seemed to hold its breath, and even the newly-weds looked at each other for a moment in slight surprise… though Katherine's look was more of disgust.

'Father, how could you?' Katherine asked silently, leaning a little forward and sharpening her lips, her eyes and fists clenched tightly.

Goliath on the other hand (or in his case the other _claw_) hesitated for a couple of seconds longer, looking a little bit bewildered.

In all their planning and preparation for this night, Goliath and the others had forgotten one little thing…

Gargoyles didn't kiss.

It had never been a custom amongst his kind. No one knew why, but Gargoyles just didn't kiss, that was their way. The idea of two people pressing their lips against one another was as alien to a Gargoyle as gliding was to a Human. Their idea of showing affection for a loved one was by lightly rubbing their knuckles against the other's forehead. None of them had ever tried doing it 'The Human Way'.

Goliath wasn't completely blind to the art of kissing though, as he had seen it done many times by Humans before. He had just never tried it himself.

'I suppose now is as good a time as any to try,' the leader of the Gargoyle clan thought, and frowned for a moment as he quickly tried to remember what the Humans he had seen kiss had done.

He wet his lips, puckered them and then moved his head forward, his lips touching Katherine's…

"Mmmm," Goliath murmured a little, as his own lips pressed against those of his new brides and kissed her. Once he got into it, he found kissing to not being all that bad, and was even quite pleasurable really. It was certainly a lot more intimate than merely brushing one's knuckles against another's forehead.

He only wish he could have tried it with his former Angel years ago.

"Mmmm!" Katherine's muffled voice exclaimed, but Goliath just thought that was natural. He had seen all of the Human females murmur and give low moans whenever they kissed their mates. It seemed to be a habit of theirs, and he just assumed Katherine was doing the same.

He was wrong…

Obviously, Goliath should have tried kissing _before_ trying it at his wedding. His lips had fully enveloped Katherine's like a suction cup, almost to the point where to her they felt like they were stuck, as they made loud suction noises like a plunger while he kissed her.

"Ughhh!" the Princess exclaimed, as she finally dislodged herself from Goliath and hurriedly stepped back.

Goliath stared at his wife in surprise, at first wondering what was wrong, before he watched her clean her lips with her hand like mad, coughing and spitting.

The Wyvern leader then realised that he must have puckered up his lips a little too strong while kissing her… and perhaps slobbered a bit too much while trying to keep his lips wet, too.

'Oops,' he thought.

As his Princess and wife glared at him, Goliath wondered if maybe telling her that his kind had never tried kissing before would help... though from the look of her, probably not.

A small cheer came from the young Gargoyles at the windows, their claws clapping to honour the newly mated couple, whereas the Humans all remained as silent as death, as they all kept their distance.

0000000000

**One Hour Later:**

Goliath sat at the head of the table, as was his right now that he was married to Royalty, with his blushing bride by his side… or his red-faced bride anyway. Whether it was by embarrassment or by anger that she was red in the face, was anyone's guess.

Goliath's Mentor and Clan-Second sat by his right, while the Magus sat by the Princess's left. The rest of the crowd all sat at their designated places, their faces as stoic as Gargoyles during the day.

Some of the clan had finally come down from their perches on the windows, feeling it was necessary for them to offer their congratulations or at least their respect to the new couple. Judging from the look on the Princess's face this was unacceptable to her, but seeing as Goliath was now her lord and husband, and these were her lord's clan, she had no choice but to sit still and accept it.

A few of the clan gave them a friendly smile; the Trio included, but most kept their faces blank, bowing their heads in respect. Goliath bowed his own head in acknowledgement, thanking them, while Katherine just kept perfectly still, her face looking as though it would crack.

The celebratory feast had followed the ceremony, as per tradition, though the rest of the evening had continued in silence. Most of the Humans were not really hungry, as they had already eaten their evening meal, but managed a few small bites here and there.

A lot of the clan had returned to their duties, not wanting to stay and suffer the Human's scrutinising looks. Not even the Trio had stayed, though the red beaked one and the small green one had practically had to drag their large aquamarine-skinned brother out by the ears, as he had wanted to stay for the feast, his mouth almost drooling at the sight.

From the aura and attitude in the Hall, it felt more like a funeral than it did a wedding.

Finally, not being able to stand the silence or scrutiny of the room any longer, Goliath stood up as he faced the crowd…

"My many thanks for your being here, my friends," he announced, addressing them politely. "Forgive my abrupt departure, but my wife and I must take our leave of you." He then held his arm out to Katherine, waiting for her to take it.

Katherine froze, her thoughts in terror. As tradition dictated, she was to go with him to her room or what was now their wedding chamber and… _consummate_ their marriage.

She turned to the Magus, as if for protection, though there was absolutely nothing he could now do for her. The wedding ceremony was complete; they had exchanged vows in front of all who had witnessed, so not even the Holy Bible could help her now. He knew this as well, as he stared at her in utter helplessness.

Swallowing her pride and trying to ignore the looks of disgust that were no doubt being thrown her way by the crowd, she forced herself up and hooked her arm with that of her new husband.

They made their way down the Hall, passing by all in their seats. The Captain even held up his goblet to Goliath, as though wishing him luck.

Leaving the Great Hall to anyone who wanted to celebrate the wedding, few as that might be, the newly wedded couple walked down the floors of Wyvern... Or rather it was Katherine who went on ahead…

The second they were out of sight from everyone in the Hall, she had unhooked her arm from his and walked on ahead while Goliath followed her from at a distance, wanting to allow her her freedom.

Reaching their new common quarters, they silently passed the two guards who stood watch at the entrance of it.

"Did you see the look on her face?" the first guard asked, as the Gargoyle closed the door behind him, sounding amused.

"Bet she is wondering if _everything_ on him is as large," the second guard replied, grinning smoothly.

"I'd be more worried about whether he is as _heavy_ as he looks," the first guffawed. "If he is, then I hope the Court Physician is ready at hand. Cos she's gonna need him after her husband mounts her."

The two of them laughed.

On the other side of the door, the Princess had walked straight to her commode, looking at herself in the small mirror fixed to it, and thereby accidentally looking at her husband standing two metres behind her.

He was practically ripping his clothes off, struggling to get out of them.

'Can't he wait at least one minute?' the Princess asked herself in shock, knowing that as her husband it was his right to take her this very night.

She had by then stopped looking at Goliath in the mirror, but she could still hear him as he wriggled out of what was undoubtedly the last of his clothes. She heard the sound of his garments, as they hit the floor followed by the sound of talon feet crossing the floor over to her.

Katherine found her hand trembling in fear. Since she had never had anything to do with the Gargoyles, she didn't know anything about their mating habits or such. Her only source of knowledge about them were the rumours she had heard from her subjects…

One of her maids had once told her a tale about how one Gargoyle, that had no mate, went mad with desire, attacking everything in sight until he found a young maiden… By the time they had found her, she had been 'done' to death, her body nothing but mangled flesh.

This story was of course completely untrue, but Katherine did not know that.

Trembling even more, and having to prop herself on the chest of drawers so as not to fall, the Princess tried hard not to loose her self control while asking herself once again how her father could have done this to her.

She heard Goliath's footsteps finally approach her, and she tried to bravely brace herself, expecting Goliath's claws to immediately start ripping her clothing off…

"I am not used to wearing so much attire," Goliath suddenly spoke up from behind her. "Forgive me, but only the aged wear that much clothing," he explained. "They are more sensitive to the cold than the rest of us, you see. And wearing all that cloth was really quite dehydrating for me."

The Princess looked around and saw to her relief that he was still dressed, now once more in his simple loincloth. Breathing out a huge sigh of relief, she realised that the Gargoyle apparently had no intention to take his right... at least not this night.

"Never," she hissed.

"What?" Goliath asked, puzzled.

The Princess stared right into his eyes.

"I said you will never enter _my_ bed!" she exclaimed.

Goliath shrugged his shoulders, not getting the point.

"My kind doesn't use beds," he explained.

"And you will wear clothes in my presence," the Princess continued, taking a step closer to her husband. "It is _unthinkable _and shaming for the whole Kingdom if a Prin… If the _ruling_ _person_ is seen without proper clothing."

Goliath stared for a moment at the woman, and then he nodded, if unhappily.

"If it is necessary for the well being of the castle..." he began in a neutral tone.

"It is," the Princess noted angrily.

After a moment of silence in which the Princess never let the Gargoyle out of her sight, Goliath reached for the bag fixed on his belt, pulling out two parts of a talisman, which together displayed a golden bird on a blue background.

"What is this?" Katherine asked, surprised and suspicious.

"I don't know what it is called," Goliath replied calmly as he looked at it, for a moment sunken in thoughts, remembering the night when his former love had given it to him, and then threw it back at him the night when he had told her that he was to break up with her, telling him she would no longer need it.

Despite how things had turned out, they had spent many happy years together and this talisman had always been part of that happiness.

"I know that it is common for Humans to exchange tokens to symbolise their… _union_," he explained. "We may not have rings, but maybe this can be a symbol of ours."

The Princess stared on the one half her husband held out to her...

"It looks dirty," she snorted.

Goliath worked hard to suppress a growl.

Katherine took a step back in fear, her eyes hooked on him.

Goliath quickly bowed his head in an apology. "I apologise, my… " he paused, wondering what to call her. He could no longer simply call her 'Princess' as she was now his mate, but he didn't think she would appreciate being called by a Gargoyle title, and he certainly couldn't call her his love. That honour was reserved for someone else, someone now beyond his reach.

"My wife," he finished, deciding that that name was better as it was a Human title.

Unfortunately, that title didn't seem to fit well with her either, as she breathed in sharply, glaring daggers at him.

"I need to sleep!" she declared finally, turning to go behind the veil to change. "If you must stay then please be quiet!" She didn't bother to wait for his reply, hurrying behind the veil with her bedclothes.

Goliath sighed, deciding that this mateship was definitely going to be something that they were all going to have to work very hard at indeed.

0000000000

**Four Days Later; Battlements: **

Sunset had come and gone, leaving Othello standing with a group of his clan-members, the last seven who had yet to receive their orders for the night. They consisted of Iago, Thersities and several others of their rookery.

"You three will stand watch at the east battlements," Othello instructed the warriors, "and you four will take the west."

"So where is our brave and devoted leader then?" Iago then asked, looking bored. "Or has he decided to skip a night to spend time with his _beloved_ mate?"

Othello growled warningly at him. "What our leader decides to do with his own time is his own affair, _brother_," he hissed. If ever there was a time when he could wish to forget that this honourless blackguard was of his clan and rookery, then tonight was that night.

In truth he was wondering where Goliath was? Iago had deliberately been making a jest out of Goliath's farce of a mate, as she and he rarely remained in the same side of the castle, let alone spend time together.

Since his mating to Princess Katherine, Goliath had taken to sleeping his days on the balcony outside of what was now both his and the Princess's bedroom. But despite being newly mated, Goliath was never late for his duties as clan-leader, as Katherine was always all too eager for him to depart and leave her be.

"I never _skip_ out of serving my clan, brother," a voice suddenly sounded behind them.

The eight of them turned to see their brother and leader emerge from the shadows of one of the staircases…

"Ohhh," Thersities smirked. "Check out his Royal fanciness!"

Most of them sniggered a little between themselves, as Goliath came toward them.

Goliath's face turned a darker shade of lavender, as he stood in the vast amount of clothing his 'wife' had demanded that he wear. Tonight he was wearing a long tunic of dark brown with a gold trim, along with some long sleeves, and some trousers that had been cut to his stature. The material looked thick, and anyone could see the sweat glistening on Goliath's forehead.

"Don't you have guard-duty to do?" Othello snapped, his eyes flaring at them.

Thersities made a quick getaway, the others following his example.

"Oh, and brother!" Othello called out to Thersities as he took flight. "Next time, try finding a better hiding place than the apple-barrel! It may have worked when you were a hatchling, but you've long since outgrown it now!"

Thersities swore lowly, gliding quickly to his designated post.

Othello turned back to look at his leader.

"My many thanks for seeing to everyone's instructions tonight, brother," Goliath told him, shifting uncomfortably in his other yet new attire.

Othello quirked an eyeridge at him. "Forgive me, Goliath," he asked. "But why exactly are you wearing that thing? I mean I understood why you did it the night of your mat… your _wedding_. But that was four nights ago now. Why do you persist in still wearing Human garments? You know you do not need them, and I can see how uncomfortable it is for you to don them so."

Goliath sighed. "I am not doing this by choice, friend," he replied. "My 'wife' insists that I wear such when I am in her presence. And it takes too much time to keep removing and putting them back on again, so it makes more sense to just keep wearing them. I dare not anger her so."

The constant wearing of too much clothes was but one of many mental tortures he had had to suffer under the fist of his new bride. Katherine had demanded not only that he wear clothing whenever in her presence, but also to speak only when spoken to, sleep out on the balcony and never within _her_ room, and basically to keep himself out of her sight whenever possible.

Growing up, Goliath had often heard the soldiers of Castle Wyvern tell jokes to each other, mostly about how marriage was more like a trap for young fools who would then get ruled by their wives, making their lives a living misery. He had thought them nothing more than simple jests, but after a few days of marriage to Katherine… he was entitled to believe otherwise.

Othello snorted in disgust. "If you say so, though personally I think you're letting her walk all over you. After all, who is she to say what you have to do and what you have to wear?"

Inwardly, the second sighed. When he had learned of his brother's plan it had sounded strange, but at least there seemed to be the chance of improvements in the way the Humans treated them, and now... just thinking about all the ridiculous clothes he had to wear, maybe even on the hunts, made him feel ill.

"She is the Princess and my mate," Goliath noted, his tone growing more stretched.

"She is your wife, not mate," Othello replied. "Would you let your mate do this to you? Like the Mentor said, Human females have to obey their men's word once they are married! And you are the ruler of Wyvern now!"

"On paper! Can't you see that by pressing on it I might lead to a confrontation between us and them that we can't win?" Goliath countered in irritation, just to add something a bit more calmly. "Just wait, please. We are barely past the first week of our joining, brother. We have to give her time to come to terms with her and mine new… _arrangement_. You cannot expect miracles within the first week, surely?"

Othello frowned.

"Maybe not," he agreed. "But when you went through with the wedding, you convinced us that in the long run our lives would improve greatly. It's been four nights now since your union and we have yet to see any changes. The Human still turn their noses up at us and cower in fear whenever we approach..."

"I know," Goliath said, his voice just hinting frustration, "but we must be patient."

"Maybe we can't," Othello said honestly.

"What do you mean?"

Othello growled lowly.

"Our sly brother and even some of the elders have been speaking behind your back. They were against the marriage from the start. The elders were so because they didn't approve of such a union, but also because you and our Mentor kept it secret from the whole clan for so long. They were really angered about that most of all despite your explanation. They are seriously reconsidering your role as leader."

He then snorted. "Though I doubt our brother truly believes so. I'm convinced he only encourages the elder's beliefs just to gain you trouble."

"He has never forgiven me for banishing him," Goliath shook his head.

"That was his own fault for setting us upon one another, by convincing me that you and my beloved were being unfaithful," Othello snarled. "In my opinion he got off too lightly. You should have banished him for good."

"Do you believe the elders will go through with their intent?" Goliath then asked in a hard tone, changing the subject and wanting to know the seriousness of the matter.

Othello sighed. "I really don't know," he replied honestly. "They are quite inflamed about all of this, Goliath. On the one claw they understand your reasons, and if everything you say comes to be then everything should be fine…. but only _if_ things start to change. As I said, although it's merely been a few nights, there has been no sign of change on the Human's part towards us. If this remains so, I do believe the elders will take action. They are tired of merely taking your word that things are _going_ to change."

Goliath frowned, rubbing his forehead as though in pain. "A calamity," he deduced.

"That's one way of putting it, yes," Othello concurred. "For now, all that is happening in the clan is talking. But in time that may soon change."

Goliath looked over the courtyard where his clan and the Humans were going among their businesses, separated and eager not to cross the other's path.

"We should go and join the others for guard-duty," he said finally, making clear that the topic was over… for now.

Othello nodded and soon followed after him, neither of them noticing the shadow in the nearby stone-staircase.

The Captain watched the two winged forms glide through the air, heading towards one of the other battlements, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

0000000000

**Two Nights Later: **

"I do not require your assistance!" Katherine yelled, as she hurried out her room with Goliath close behind her.

"This is to be a discussion concerning the castle's inhabitants," Goliath insisted, easily keeping up with her, barely taking a few steps because of his long legs. "As your husband and ruling partner, I do feel I should be present… "

"You stick to your own little part of this Kingdom, _Gargoyle_!" Katherine snapped. "You have your clan so see to them instead. I will deal with all other matters concerning the castle, especially those that concern _my_ kind."

"As you wish," Goliath said, holding back a growl.

Katherine gave a "huff" and hurried away down the corridor.

Goliath had awoken less than a few minutes ago and already he was faced with a fresh new heated discussion with his _beloved_ wife…

Katherine found one act by being married to Goliath worst of all, and that was her having to inform him every time whenever she had to go see to her Royal duties. As her lord, husband and ruling partner, it was his right to be involved and take part in the ruling of this Kingdom, just as much as she, if not more… Something that Katherine took no joy in. Although he never took part, mainly because of her insistently and consistently telling him that his presence would not be required, she still had to inform him whenever such an event was to take place… As if they would ever desire a Gargoyle at any of their proceedings!

Since the Vikings had all but gone now, since their defeat at Wyvern almost a week ago, the refugees who had lost their homes to the savages had finally started their journey back to their homelands, save for a few who had decided to remain at Wyvern.

They had been gladly welcomed to stay, but unfortunately some of the castle's other inhabitants were not so inviting. Because there were only so many jobs in this one castle, some of the now former refugees had to share their workload with the castle's original workers, and not all were too happy about it.

Katherine had waited until the last few rays of daylight had faded over the horizon, and the multiple cracks started appearing all over her husband's stone-skin. And each time when she saw him, her hatred of him seemed to grow more intense.

Goliath always knelt on the stone floor of her balcony outside her bedroom window, for Katherine refused to have him within her room. She could have claimed that he would have scattered all of his stone-skin everywhere when he awoke, but in all truthfulness she just didn't want him anywhere near her, even in sleep... though admittedly Goliath had never pressed on this, feeling better by resting outside.

No matter how many times she had seen it, Katherine was both amazed and frightened by the ferocious manner in which Goliath awoke from his day's rest. The fury he displayed, and the way he always seemed fully rejuvenated each evening… she had to admit it was astounding, if nerve-racking.

She had waited less than a second before she quickly told him about the small problem with the peasants, followed by…

"And put this on!" she demanded, handing him yet another outfit designed by the Royal tailors, and then hurried out after informing him yet again that his presence would _not_ be required.

Goliath had of course offered to come, but again as usual his offer was declined.

With his wife gone to see to her own duties for the evening, Goliath decided to return to his clan and see to his.

He past by the two soldiers on guard outside what was supposed to be both his and her room, but what still felt like just hers, and gave them a friendly greeting.

"Good evening," he said, but the guards merely gave him a small nod of their heads, their faces with small but noticeable frowns upon them.

Goliath paid them no heed, and went through the door into their room, changed into his new outfit before going out the balcony doors and making his way up to the battlements to meet with his Second.

He soon found Othello with a group of four young male warriors, recognising them from the Trio's generation. He particularly recognised these ones, as they were considered to be some of the more 'wilder' youngsters of the clan, and were called as such 'The Wild Four'. They were known for always getting into mischief and being impetuous…

There was a small smoke-black one with a short wide beak, no hair and a lean body. He probably was by far the more intelligent one of their group, but still had a knack for always getting into trouble.

The tallest one among them was a large, crested and light-brown skinned Gargoyle. He was the only one with an impressive body-build of muscle, which made him look older than the rest of their quartet. The rest of them had lean and agile bodies. He also had stray hair with a peculiar shark-like fin on his head, which parted his hair right down the middle.

The other two were a short red-skinned one with a short beak and no hair, and a tall green-skinned warrior with long black hair and extremely long shoulder and knee spikes. They were just as smart as the rest of their friends, and known for getting into just as much trouble.

The four of them rarely left each other's sides, and had now discovered their leader together.

"Do they give you a new outfit for each night of the week?" the black one joked, his beak being faster than his brain, as he noticed that this time his leader was wearing a dark blue tunic with a black leather belt, his feet bound with dark material to make it seem as if he was wearing shoes.

"Take heed, young one," Othello warned, noticing the look on his brother's face. "One should watch his tone while addressing his leader."

Goliath growled lowly, but said nothing.

"Have you set the clan's duties for tonight?" he then asked.

Othello nodded, noticing that the young ones were keeping silent, having noticed the hard glare they got from their leader... not that he blamed them.

"Aye," he replied, but looked quizzically at his leader. "Though I thought you would not be available tonight. I had heard there were some trouble and that the Royals would be needed?"

"My… presence was not needed." Goliath sighed.

"She prevailed over him yet again," the one with the long spikes whispered to his tall brother.

"My future mate will never do that with me," the one with the fin replied silently, but not silent enough...

"You have to learn a lot about mateship," Othello commented, making him jump slightly.

"This joining is for the best of all of us," Goliath noted, growing impatient with the young ones.

"Haven't noticed that yet..." the short red one with the beak commented.

"You're her leader now, too," the smoke black one commented. "Can't you just order her to treat us better?"

Othello kept silent, although there was a big part of him that heartily agreed with what these youngsters were saying.

"This is more complicated... " Goliath explained calmly, looking at the young warriors. "Maybe I** could, **but this means she and all the Humans in the castle were** forced** to do this while retaining their prejudices, and could probably act on them again by the next opportunity... Is this the way to coexist that you desire?"

"I would be happy already if the guards stopped yelling on me every time I come near them," the smoke black one commented, getting angrier by the second. "If it means we have to force them with the whip, we shou..."

"Watch your tongue, laddie!" a loud voice suddenly sounded.

They all turned and saw the Mentor making his way over towards them, the Captain close behind him. The youngsters quickly stood back, bowing their heads in respect.

"Lad, a word if ye please?" the Mentor requested of the clan-leader.

Goliath gave a hard look to the young warriors. "We will speak some other time," he said honestly. "For now… I believe our talkative elder could need some assistance in his training exercises." He was of course referring to the elder who Brother Edmund called Agamemnon, quite possibly the longest talker in the whole clan.

The youngsters all shared a collective groan, but another hard look from their leader made them go begrudgingly on their way.

"Second," the Mentor addressed Othello. "I would have you remain."

Othello looked at him in confusion, but nodded, wondering what was going on.

"Lad, the Captain has a few things he wishes to say to ye," the Mentor finally said, indicating the clan's life-long friend.

"What is it?" Goliath asked.

"Lad," the Captain sighed. "I'm afraid this is not a social visit. I'm here to speak with you about the fact that you are not living up to your role as Prince of Wyvern."

Goliath looked aghast at what he had just said.

_"How can you say that?" he demanded. "I_ **married** her, I _live_ with her, and risk the unity of my clan against me!"

"Don't take this the wrong way, lad," his Mentor added. "We know ye have been trying yuir best in this marriage to the Princess, but the fact is, as harsh as this may sound… it's not enough."

Goliath crossed his arms, trying to calm down and hear what the elder Gargoyle had to say.

"Second," the Captain addressed the clan's second-in-command. "While I was walking the steps of the castle two nights ago, I overheard your discussion with Goliath about what some in your clan were saying about his union with Princess Katherine. Tell us, has anything in that discussion changed in the last couple of nights?"

Othello looked a little unsure, as he gazed back and forth between the Captain, his leader and his Mentor, but finally he sighed and shook his head. "Nay," he answered. "Those that started out as mere words have now grown into full blown arguments amongst the clan. Many feel that this mating was a complete waste of time, and some among the elders are discussing more and more that Goliath's position as leader should be challenged."

Goliath stared at him, his eyes wide. Othello had told him all this before, but he really thought that it was just something that would pass in time.

The Mentor sighed. He had heard that the elders were discussing something, but since it had been revealed that he had played a big part in Goliath's betrothal to Katherine and keeping it secret, he was no longer held part in any of the clan's discussions.

"Since your marriage," he remarked. "There have been no changes concerning any of our clan. The Humans still look at us with fear and loathing, save for you. We dare not challenge them. And we are still not even allowed in the Great Hall, as the Princess still views us as less than dogs. With all this in mind, it's no wonder that the clan feels so."

"We have been mated less than a week!" Goliath insisted. "Surely you can't… "

"It's not just the delay in any change that's in worry here, Goliath," the Captain interrupted. "It's your unwillingness to play any part in your role as Prince."

Goliath stuck out his chin. "I have offered my support to the Princess in every way on every event that has arose. "

"That's just it!" the Captain said, his voice barely hiding his frustration. "You should not have to offer your support in such matters, because they are your matters to begin with! You are the Prince of Wyvern now, leader of both your clan and mine… When you married Katherine, you inherited all her rights and privileges, and all the responsibilities that come with them."

"We all knew that Katherine would need time to adjust to her role as my mate," Goliath explained. "I am simply giving her time to see that her prejudices are false."

"She won't see that!" the Captain replied. "Lad, I know you are only doing what you think is right, but… this way has failed over the last ten years, which is why you had to make these sacrifices anyway."

Goliath remained silent for a moment.

"Maybe it was the only way possible then, but now you are ruler," the Captain explained. "Now you can and must force her. If you can't work together..."

"If I do..." Goliath began. "If I dare deny her, it will surely start a heated argument, which could lead to trouble for the clan."

"Only if you let it," the Mentor interjected. "Remember, Katherine is now your mate and must follow your orders as the other Humans must. Be her leader, and as far as ruling the Kingdom goes, ye should treat her then as ye would your own Second. This might be the only way not just so you can help your clan, but also so that you can help _her s_ee the truth about us."

"By dominating her?" Goliath asked.

At Goliath's inquisitive look, the elder sighed.

"Hopefully not, lad," he explained. "But if she still refuses to treat you with respect, then yes. Remember, we made this plan to allow both of our clans to coexist in the future, and there won't be a future if you allow her to continue as she is now."

"Aye," the Captain agreed. "What if there is another leader... one of them who doesn't believe in this alliance as we do? Then there** will** be a confrontation."

Othello, who had remained quiet all this time, kept still and just watched at all what was happening, listening to everyone's remark and point of view. He had to admit that he agreed with the Mentor and the Captain, but he also knew how terribly stressing this all was for Goliath.

Goliath meanwhile stood where he was, his mind processing all the thoughts that his friend and former leader had laid out for him. His friends also stood where they were, awaiting his reply.

After what seemed like an eternity, Goliath finally sighed, raised his head and looked at them all straight in their eyes…

"If you will excuse me," he said. "My _wife_ is in the middle of some dispute between some of the Castle staff. I believe I should attend."

Both the Captain and Mentor smiled, as Goliath turned and started making his way down to the Great Hall where even now Katherine was no doubt speaking with the servants in question.

Othello watched him leave, his thoughts a mixture of pride and nervousness. Somehow, he doubted that Katherine was going to like whatever Goliath was going to say to her next.

0000000000

**Great Hall: **

As tradition, within cases where she had to judge, Katherine sat on her throne while two men were standing in front of her, explaining their problems…

"See, Your Highness," the representative of the castle's longer inhabitants, an elder man with light grey hair, said respectfully. "We are the ones who have lived here the longest, ever since your father led us here, and we gladly took in refugees as a gesture of goodwill… But only because we were under the impression that they would all return to their homes once the danger with the Vikings had past, and all our scouts have told us their boats have now left our shores."

"We have no homes to go back to!" the spokesman of the remaining refugees, a smaller and stout man with washed but worn out clothes, replied sadly. "Most of our homes were burned down by these raiding pigs, and the seed has been stolen as has the cattle... It will take months for us to build up again. Many will starve and die without shelter if you order us to go now."

"How many of us will starve if you stay?" the older man said furiously. "There is not enough work for all of you here, and without the outer farms to supply us... "

"This is serious indeed," the Princess stopped him before the situation could escalate even more. "I will think about both arguments and then..."

"No!" a deep voice, coming from behind the two men, interrupted her. "This will be cleared now."

Totally surprised, the Princess looked up to see Goliath entering the Great Hall.

"How dare ye!" she shouted on him. "What are you doing here? And what right have you...?"

"A decision is to be made by the ruler of this castle," the big Gargoyle told his wife in a harsh tone. "Not by you."

There was a moment of silence in which the Princess stared at Goliath, and then to the men around her who seemed likewise shocked.

"I know of how the Vikings have hurt this land, as I know how hard the Humans in this castle are working everyday for their families. So listen to my orders…" the Prince of Wyvern said. "Whoever has no home can stay here for two months, which should be enough time for them to rebuild, especially if my clan helps them. During this time, any work in the castle will be done by a combination of both local and refugee workers. After this time we will decide again who can stay, based on their work and on the state of their homes."

For a moment, the Humans just stared at the large Gargoyle.

"You can go now," Goliath told them.

Both men looked on the Gargoyle for a moment, then to the Princess who just glared angrily on him, and decided they certainly didn't want to take part in this discussion and hurried out the room.

"How dare you, you filthy beast! To assume you had the right for that!" Katherine screamed on him, having risen from her throne.

"We are not beasts or monsters, we are Gargoyles! And I'm going to teach you to respect the name." Goliath replied in a harsh voice, crossing his arms. "I am the leader of this castle and all its people, and from now on things will change, beginning with this..."

With that, Goliath began ripping off all of his expensive clothes in front the unbelieving stare of the Princess until he stood in only his old loincloth.

"From now on these will be the only clothes I shall wear, and you will have to get used to it, especially during the feast in the Great Hall tonight," the Gargoyle told her, as he turned around to leave for the door.

"Feast?" Katherine shouted on the large Gargoyle. "What feast? There is no feast tonight!"

Goliath paid her no heed, but instead noticed how the guards stood to attention as he passed them, marking one great improvement already.

0000000000

**Later That Evening; Great Hall:**

A happy feast was being celebrated in the Great Hall... or at least on the left side of the Hall, where members of the clan ate in it for the first time in years, using the time for eating, drinking and talking happily amongst themselves. Most of the clan, including the Wild Four, were laughing loudly at one another, joking and feasting… and one of them got a little silly and stood up on top of the table, fooling around, much to the anger of their neighbours who quickly rebuked them.

The Humans on the right side were much quieter. They watched the Gargoyles with suspicion and downright disgust, but the Gargoyles did not mind in the slightest, as they were long since used to it, and were too overjoyed to finally being allowed back in the Great Hall to allow any Human prejudice stand in their way of a good time.

Occasionally, one of the Humans threw a short look to the head of the table where the Princess sat beside the castle's Regent on the Gargoyle side of the table.

Katherine tried her best not to loose her dignity, knowing that her people were watching her, knowing that everyone must have realised that she had lost control over the castle... over her own home.

Yet the barking of the Gargoyle's beasts thwarted her attempt at even that, as they ran across the Hall from one side to another, followed by an occasional stream of hatchlings, as they ran behind and even _under_ the table.

"Are you well?" Goliath asked in a worried tone, having heard her shriek, as she had felt something that was either a hatchling or a beast run under the table.

The Princess just glared at him angrily before going back to her meal, eating up the meat with the fork she had dropped on her plate out of surprise, trying to consume it as quickly as possible. Yet this effort was also thwarted when she heard the sounds of someone to her left being seemingly even more eager to get his plate clean.

Since it had become known to her that tonight they were to share their banquet with the Gargoyles, Katherine had done her best not to show her disgust, or to even look around at what had once been _her_ Great Hall, now filled with monsters gorging on the food that had been prepared by the best Cooks. She had especially done her best not to look around the Hall since she learned that she was to share her own table with some of the clan. She hadn't even looked to her left since the meal had started.

Despite her better judgement, Katharine turned to look at her left…

There, sitting right next to her, was the largest and fattest creature, Gargoyle or not, that she had ever seen. It was a huge and thick aquamarine-skinned Gargoyle, similar to Goliath's second, but younger and with more fat than muscle. Just the sight of this large Gargoyle devouring his food made her feel sick, as she raised her hand to cover her mouth.

He ate as though he had not eaten in days, grabbing one clawful after another, ramming them into his mouth, chewing loudly and noisily.

He seemingly finished, made a large belch and then leaned over the table, trying to reach for some more cooked meats from the large plate near the centre. The plate however was too far for him to reach, so he ended up having to stand up and lean right over the table.

When he stood up, Katherine could not help but stare unbelieving at the mass of his abdomen. Its size seemed to suggest that he had eaten three whole cows already in this one night.

"Excuse me, Princess," he said politely, leaning over right in front of her, reaching for the plate. As he leaned over, part of his loincloth at the back flapped over and hung to the side, revealing a large section of his thigh and left buttock.

Katherine fought hard to control her stomach, as her eyes stayed focused in shock at the large quivering mass of aqua flesh in front of her. Finally he reached the plate of his desire and stood back up again, grinning at the wife of his leader.

"Thank you," he said and sat back down, eagerly indulging in his food again.

"Why can't your kind wear more clothes?" the Princess hissed at her husband, feeling ill.

"We have very little need for them, as we don't suffer from the elements as easily as your kind," Goliath explained while shrugging his shoulders. "Indeed, in the past before Humans and Gargoyles lived together, only the elders wore any clothes at all because of their sensitivity to the cold. While the rest of us just walked clothed as your newborn babes do. Why even today during the summer, my siblings and I sometimes go down to the lake in the forest where we remove..."

"ENOUGH!" the Princess screamed on him, making several Gargoyles and Humans look on her in surprise.

Goliath blinked at her.

"Thank you," Katherine said more quietly. "But that is more than enough information than I required… or _desired_." She hissed, as she tried burning away the image of Goliath and his clanmates standing in the forest on the Summer Solstice, clad only in what Humans of the future would one day call their 'birthday suits', in her mind.

0000000000

**Two Hours Later; The Royal Chambers:**

Katherine hurried to her room, only for her to be followed by her husband.

Although he had never insinuated that he had any real desire to finally consummate their marriage, she still felt her heart freeze with fear every time when he followed her to their room.

"What do you want now?" she demanded. "Isn't it enough that I have to cope with you stealing my Kingdom, taking over my duties and finally having to sit with you and your damned clan at dinner? What more do you want?"

Goliath merely replied her hard stare with a calm one. "I expect you, as Princess of Wyvern, to become more involved with the life of this castle."

"I thought I was already doing that right before you stole my throne from me," she said bitterly.

"No, you have merely been ruling us with prejudice and a cold heart," Goliath said accusingly. "A true leader does not have his clan serve _him_, he serves _them_! And come tomorrow, you will begin your first new duties as sister to my clan"

Katherine looked at him as though he had gone mad. "A sister?" she said disbelieving. "To your kind! You truly must be out of your mind if you think I shall ever agree to that!

"Do you think I would bother suggesting it if you had any real choice?" Goliath replied, and then added more slowly… "My _wife_!"

Katherine seethed lowly. The term 'wife' was now forever a bane to her existence.

"You are trying my patience, _husband_," she rebuked.

"Nonetheless, never forget your place now, Katherine," Goliath said, calling her by her first name for once. "Remember, I rule now. Though I would prefer to rule by your side as an equal, I will not stand by and have you rebuke those who serve you loyally, my clan especially. And I will not have you sitting in here every day and night doing nothing. Whether you like it or not, you are now sister to my clan through our union, and as such you shall learn to live as one of us, too."

If Katherine had been a Gargoyle then her eyes would surely be flaming red by now, as she glared dangerously at her husband.

"Come tomorrow," Goliath continued. "You shall face your first duty as sister to my clan, beginning with what I believe some Humans call… beastkeeping."

**"**_**What**_**?"**

0000000000

**Castle Battlements; Next Evening:**

The siblings sat on the battlements and watched the scene below in the courtyard of the castle with mixed feelings of disbelief, amusement and interest.

"How long has she been doing that?" Othello asked, having just arrived together with the hunting party.

"Fifteen minutes," Desdemona replied, looking down where the Princess was unsuccessfully trying to hold several gargbeasts, which ran around her like mad, in check.

"Where are the other beastkeepers?" Diomedes asked from his position beside Fuchsia.

"Guess they were otherwise occupied," Thersities explained with a broad grin on his beak, elbowing his brother.

"Weren't you assigned to that, too?" Fuchsia asked.

Thersities' smile grew larger, yet he knew better than to answer that while watching how the Princess's clothing gathered more and more mud by the uncontrolled beasts.

"Can't believe he got her to do that," Desdemona wondered out-loud, watching how the Princess began shouting at the beasts seemingly in anger and frustration.

"Oh, I heard she refused, until there was a talk," Thersities gossiped. "Apparently our Second told our leader that since she was his mate then she had to obey him."

"_Really?_" Desdemona asked, looking to her mate with calm but dangerous eyes.

"I remembered him saying that as his wife she had to obey him, according to Human laws," Othello hurried to explain. "And apparently it's worked quite well."

A loud shriek made all of them look down to the ground where a beast had found that the Human _apparently_ wanted to play with them, thus jumping on her and pressing her face into the dirt.

"Quite well," Thersities commented.

From down below, Katherine raised herself up from the mud, spitting some out from her mouth, spluttering in anger.

Some of the beasts came close to her, attempting to lick her affectionately…

Katherine spun her head sharply to them, glaring angrily at them with a look that would frighten even Goliath at that moment.

The beasts all cowered back, their ears drooped low, whimpering slightly.

"This is the absolute limit!" Katherine screeched, throwing the ropes that had been used as a leash to the ground. Her voice was streaked with the shriek of anger and the wallow of despair.

"Problems, Your Highness?" a rough Scottish brogue asked.

Katherine didn't need to look up to see who had spoke, as she knew the voice well. "You and your whole clan are my problem, creature!" she hissed at the elder with the one eye.

The Mentor didn't respond at first, but just stood where he was, staring at the now mud-covered Princess.

"Just so ye know," he finally spoke. "You've got something on yuir face."

Katherine glared hatefully at him, knowing full well that her entire body was covered from head to toe in mud, not just her face.

"I had heard Goliath had set this task for you," he remarked. "But I had to see it for myself to believe it. Never thought I'd see the night when I'd find you in the dirt with the beasts."

"Well, I hope you and that traitor Captain are splitting your sides with laughter," Katherine spat. "You certainly earned it… conspiring together, tricking my father into betrothing me to your leader, stealing my throne, making me no more than a slave in my own castle! Yes, you earned every laugh and giggle from your mouth!"

The former leader sighed. "Your Highness, I know it don't look like it, but believe it or not we did all this for your own good, too."

Katherine laughed spitefully. "Yes, I am sure subjecting me to outrageous humiliation night after night will help me someday, if ever I should consider work as a Court Jester!"

The Mentor stood there for a few moments, staring at her thoughtfully before finally coming up to her. "Do ye require any help?" he asked, indicating the beasts that were still cowering in the far corner of the courtyard.

Katherine didn't respond at first. Part of her wanted to just throw the leashes at him and leave him to look after the blasted animals by himself… But Goliath had set her a task and despite everything, demeaning as it was to her, Katherine was a Princess born from nobility, and as such her own sense of honour refused to let her back down from any challenge.

"No," she said elegantly. "We thank you, but we do not require any help in anything so mere as taking care of some pitiful animals, large as they maybe."

'Well, at least she's polite,' the old warrior thought. 'And not a weakling when it comes to challenges.'

"As ye wish, Your Highness," he replied, bowing shortly before her. He turned around to leave, but before he did, he paused briefly…

"Your Highness," he started. "Forgive me for bringing this up, I know this to be a painful subject for you, but… Just so you know, my clan and I… we did try our best in helping your father when the Archmage poisoned him. Any one of us would have given our own life to save his if we could have."

Katherine stiffened, her hand clutching the leash tightly. "We do not wish to talk of such things, Gargoyle," she remarked. "Twas a long time ago and nothing can change what happened, so talking about it will make no difference now."

"Aye, but… "

"We will speak no more of this!" Katherine said harshly, eyeing him dangerously.

The Mentor of the Gargoyle clan opened his mouth, seemingly to speak more, but in the end he chose against it. Sighing once more, he made another short bow and left.

Katherine stood where she was for a few moments longer, watching him leave until she started to head towards the beasts, their leashes in her hands…

"All right then, beasts," she muttered. "Tis time for your walk, and then your bath."

The watchdogs whined.

0000000000

**Royal Chambers; Three Hours Later:**

Goliath sat in the large oak-chair beside the fireplace, reading the book that he had borrowed from Brother Edmund. It had been a long night of almost endless discussions between members of his own clan, settling disputes with the Humans and telling the Royal Tailors to once again leave him alone as he no longer required their services. As such, he was grateful for a moment to finally be able to relax.

The only thing that confused him now was… where was Katherine? It was now late into the night and she still hadn't returned to their room. He had, for now, given her the single task of taking care of the watchdogs, as he knew she would not yet be used to remaining awake for so long into the night.

Suddenly, the door to their room burst open and Katherine came staggering in, looking as though she had just walked in from a typhoon, her clothes soaking wet.

"What on…?" Goliath began.

"Your beasts have now been thoroughly walked and cleaned!" Katherine yelled at him and then strode up to her private changing quarters. "If you don't mind, we are fatigued and wish to retire for the night!" Not waiting for an answer, she went straight behind the curtain to change.

Goliath stared at her curtain for a moment, blinking in surprise. "Perhaps I should have given her watch-duty instead?" he wondered.

0000000000

**One Month Later:**

Time had not been so kind for the Royal household of Wyvern, or at least it's main member anyway…

Goliath had intended to give Katherine different duties to attend to each night as time went by, to make her better understand clan-life, but after the fiasco with the beast-hounds and her continuing outbursts with the clan, he thought it best that she remain with just that one duty, at least for now.

On the other hand, if he knew Katherine's deepest thoughts about what she actually thought of the beasts and wanted to do to them, he no doubt would have taken her off that one duty as well.

The next full moon had come and gone, leaving the rest of the clan with mixed feelings of the current string of events the past month… Despite Katherine's behaviour, there had been a lot of changes in the castle for the clan, all for the better, and the elders were for now content and seemingly no longer planned to overthrow Goliath as leader… much to his sly brother Iago's disgust.

Some of the clan were still a little disconcerted about such a union between one of their kind and a Human, but considering all the better changes their clan had had, they were willing to keep silent. A lot of them, particularly among the younger generation, were very much reaping the benefits of the union, some even daring to speak back to the castle guards who had at one time insulted them of their heritage.

As a result, there were a lot of disgruntled Humans walking about Wyvern now, but none half as much as its own Princess…

Katherine was nothing if not stubborn in her view on them, and because of her still continuing refusal to openly accept the clan as now permanent full members of her household, Goliath still wouldn't allow her to take part in any of her prior Royal duties. As such, she was still stuck with mere beastkeeping as the main event of her nightly schedule…

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Katherine had left her chambers, making her way to where the Gargoyle-hounds were even now waiting for her, eager for their walk. Despite the fact that taking care of such beasts was obviously messy work, she still insisted on wearing her fine Royal gowns, refusing to look anything like a mere servant.

As she made her way through the long corridors, leading the way to the courtyard, she could make out the faint chatter of the castle-servants. As she walked on further, she heard the voices gradually increase in volume and realised she was close to them.

She soon neared the source of the chatter, as she reached the far corner of the corridor. The servants in question were beyond the corner, chattering amongst themselves, and had not noticed her arrival.

Katherine couldn't tell how many of them there were, as she couldn't see them, but she could now clearly hear them… a variety of mixed voices.

"_...and so my cousin went to the Priests residing in the Wyvern's Inn and told them to intervene for her on her behalf,"_ one of them said. "_They did and he had to marry her!"_

"_But aren't they English Priests?"_

"_It matters not, as they are God's servants as much as our own Priests are."_

"_What are English Priests doing in an inn of all things? If they are from England, shouldn't they be here at the Castle or somewhere?" _

_"Nay, they are not high members of the Clergy. They are just some lowly Priests wandering our country. They claim they are just travelling, but I suspect they are keeping an eye on our kinsmen. These damned English think they own everything!"_

A few murmurs of agreement came from them, followed by the first one then saying...

"_And the best thing is… it turns out my cousin isn't pregnant at all!"_

Giggles arose and the Princess prepared to calmly leave. After all, she had better things to do than to listen to her maidens gossiping when...

"_Oh, did you hear the latest news?" _one of the others said.

"_No, what is it?_

"_I heard our new Prince is planning on having his clan made the official guards of the castle now. Just think, soon we'll have to be bowing down to those creatures every time we see them!" _

"_Yes, even now they have free reign over the castle. You can't go anywhere without one of those blasted things taking up space in the corridor!" _

"_What about the Princess? Surely she can do something about this?" _

"_Not from what I've heard… Apparently, our Prince Goliath has completely taken over her Royal duties." _

One of the other ladies snorted in disgust. "_If you ask me, she put up no damn resistance to this union in the first place." _

"_How do you mean?" _

The previous lady sniggered lowly. "_Well, put it this way… I hear that every time she and our lord have a disagreement, he takes her right up to their bed-chambers." _

The assorted women gasped.

"_Surely you jest!" _

"_Oh, how revolting!" _

"_Tis a disgrace!" _

"_Maybe, but it makes sense when you think about it," _the first woman remarked. "_Think of how easily she caved in, agreeing to this marriage. She probably didn't plan it, but I bet she didn't object. My guess is she likes the overgrown bat." _

From beyond the corner, Katherine's face was seething in rage, as the women laughed and joked about their mistress's plight.

Unable to listen in anymore, she turned and went to find another way down to the courtyard.

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The young Trio of inseparable male Gargoyles made their way across the castle courtyard. They had just completed their chores for the night...

"Couldn't we find some way to get out of tonight's lesson?" the red beaked one whined. "I swear if I have to listen to one of that old windbag's lectures one more time, I'll… "

"Oh calm down!" the small, green web-winged one hushed him. "I know he can go on for a bit, but Goliath says we can learn much from his experience."

"A bit?" the red one half-laughed, half-scoffed. "More like an eternity! The last time he had us listening to one of his tales for nearly half the night, just because we missed our guard time for half a minute!"

"I see no harm in hearing a tale or two," the large aquamarine one remarked, looking at the sky. "At least we can get some sleep."

"But that's just the thing though," the first moaned. "We're always having to wait till another night, because our chattering elder uses up all his time in telling us stories, as if we were hatchlings. We stopped listening to stories years ago!"

The small one turned his chin up. "Personally, I don't think you're ever too old to listen."

"Maybe, but… " the first stopped, having noticed something. "Hey, look who it is."

His two rookery brothers looked across the courtyard and saw none other than their leader's mate coming out of one of the tower staircases.

"You'd think she would have learned by now," the second sniggered, indicating the fine gown she was wearing. "I've heard she's already lost over twenty dresses to our hounds' jaws and saliva."

"Maybe we should go help her?" the large third one suggested. He had always been the kindest and most thoughtful one among their group.

"Why should we?" the red one grumbled. He didn't have a fiery vendetta against all the Humans like some of those in his clan, but the Princess had never been one of his favourites. He knew her hatred for his kind all too well.

"Because it's polite," his large eared brother told him. "Because maybe she would appreciate the help. Because she's our leader's mate and… because she's our clan-sister now."

The first groaned. He knew that ever since Goliath had told them all to treat the Princess as they would one of their own kind, it would come back to haunt him.

"It can't hurt to offer," the second added, looking at him thoughtfully with his big wide eyes.

The red-skinned warrior sighed. "Fine," he said and lead the way to where Katherine was heading…

Katherine fumed and seethed inwardly, her thoughts ablaze. How dare they accuse her of collaborating with the clan! And more importantly, how dare they suggest she actually held feelings toward her monster of a husband!

She came close to where the beast-hounds were being kept, when…

"Greetings... _sister_!" a loud voice boomed at her.

She turned to see three young Gargoyles coming toward her, one of which she recognised from the table in the Great Hall. It was the huge fat one with the large fin-like ears, and an appetite that would rival a hundred starving lions. She recognised the other two as the two Gargoyles who always seemed to occupy him wherever he went.

The fat one in question gave her a bright smile, seemingly not noticing her discomfort as neither did the other two.

The red one with the long beak led the way with the other two behind him. He had a smile on his beak, though it looked forced. The small green one's smile however looked as genuine as the large ones, as he came to her on all fours like the hounds.

Maybe it was from eavesdropping on the servant's gossiping about her predicament, or maybe all the long weeks she had spent taking care of the hounds, or how her husband had managed to steal her throne with barely raising a talon, but whatever it was… Katherine was incensed.

And the fact that one of these monsters had dared to call her its sister had not helped matters at all either…

"DO NOT CALL ME YOUR SISTER, MONSTER!" Katherine screamed at the three youngsters, making them stop in their tracks. "I am NOT your sister, nor will I ever be! No matter what your leader may say, I am Princess of this castle and you will address me as Your Royal Highness. Nothing less! And if you ever attempt to say so otherwise, I will personally have you all shattered myself, you _filthy_ _VERMIN_!"

She then rushed off in a huff, kicking at the earth as she did so.

The three stood where they were speechless, wondering what it was they had done wrong.

"What got her dress in a tangle?" the red one muttered. He was angry about being spoken to in such a way, though it was no big surprise to him, as he had expected as much from the Princess.

His two brothers however were not…

"What did we do?" the large one asked out loud. "We barely got a word out and all we were going to do was ask her if she needed help."

"She's the Princess," the first one scoffed. "What reason does she need for acting like a stuck-up wench?"

The smallest among them just looked aghast, as he stared at Katherine's retreating form.

"Hey, don't worry about it, brother," the first said in comfort. His smallest brother had always been the most sensitive one. "She gets that way with all of us, including our leader, and he's supposed to be her mate. Don't take it too personally."

"How can I not?" the green one snarled. "Did you hear what she called us? _Vermin_! After everything our clan has done for hers, after all our years of faithful service… she dares call us vermin! And she's supposed to be one of us now, what with her union to Goliath!"

"You can't expect her to change her opinion of us just because she's mated to one of us," the first told him. "If you were to marry a cat to a mouse, you wouldn't expect the cat to not eat the mouse just because they were joined, would you?"

"_Hey, what's happening here?"_ a new voice called out.

The trio looked up to see 'The Wild Four', a group of four young males as close as the Trio but known for getting into twice more mischief, gliding down toward them.

"We saw the Princess with you," the small black one asked. "What did she say?"

The red one of the Trio sighed. "What she usually says… " He explained what had happened, telling them of their intent to help their would-be sister, ending with her shouting out at them before they even made the offer.

When he was finished, all four of them were quietly gnashing their fangs in anger.

"Why the ungrateful, whining little…!"

"After everything we've done for her, too!"

"_We've_ done?"

"Well, everything our clan has done anyway."

The crested and light-brown skinned one stared hard at the Trio. "So what are you planning to do about it?"

The three young ones looked blankly at him.

"Do what?" the red one asked. "What can we do? She's the Princess."

"Aye," the brown replied, grinning. "That may be, but she's no longer in control, is she?"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying remember that she is now mate to our leader," he explained. "And whether she likes it or not, she is now sister to our clan and Goliath told us to treat her as such. So tell me… if one of our rookery sisters did what she just did now, what would you do?"

"Well… the large one said thoughtfully. "If it were one of our real sisters then… I guess we would either report her to one of the elders… "

"Tattle-tale," the small green one muttered, earning a hot glare from his larger brother.

"_Or_… " the large one continued. "We would simply get back at her somehow."

The four Wild Ones all grinned. "Exactly!" they said simultaneously.

"Now let's see," the brown one wondered out loud. "Brother, what do you think would most irritate our Human sister?" he said, addressing his small smoke-black sibling.

The smoky coloured Gargoyle sat on the ground deep in thought, as he pondered this. After a while… he smiled. "I think I know," he concluded.

"Err, I'm not so sure about this," the large one of the Trio said.

"Oh come now, brother," the tall green one with the long spikes said. "There may have been a time once when we were forced to lay down and kiss that impudent wench's feet, but now… now she's in the same boat as us, and none of us are obliged any longer to indulge her. And I for one am not going to spend the rest of my life kissing up to that whiny brat's backside!"

The Trio looked at each other, each searching the other's faces as though for some look of confirmation.

"She does no longer hold any power in the castle," the beaked one remarked.

"And as our brothers here say, she is our clan-sister, so we should treat her as such," the large one affirmed.

"And Goliath did say he wanted her to learn humility," the web-winged one added. "And in a way, we would be doing her a favour by letting her know the error of her ways."

The Trio then each gave a long grin of their own. "So what do we do?" they all asked.

The other four just smirked. "Let's go find our little sister!"

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Away from where the young warriors had just been chatting, the castle's gargbeasts stood enjoying themselves, playing with one another by either chasing or wrestling each other, all in good harmony except for...

"_Now stand still_!" the Princess shouted at an especially thick-headed, yellow Gargoyle-beast, which had her favourite red handkerchief in its mouth that it had acquired from her pocket in a moment of inattention.

The beast didn't do as ordered, but jumped away from the Human, making turns in the dust as if it was its greatest joy and reason for living, which for all the Princess knew could very well be the case.

For a moment, the Princess even believed that the beast was smiling behind the red piece of cloth.

"You..." she swore, pointing on the beast in a desperate attempt to get its attention long enough so that she could get the handkerchief back.

To the Princess's total surprise, the beast did stop its running and jumping, and just stared at her… or actually, as it dawned on the Human too late, at something behind her...

Suddenly, a strong pair of light brown arms grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her up into the air.

"AARRRRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...!" the Princess screamed, but quickly lost her breath as the world under her became smaller.

"_She is heavier than I thought,"_ a voice noted behind the terrified Human.

Managing to avert her eyes from the ground where the gargbeasts were running around and barking like mad much too low beneath her, the Princess discovered six young Gargoyles gliding beside her, with one other holding her.

"Must be all the garments she wears," the small red-skinned one answered through his beak.

In a corner of her mind, which had somehow managed not to be totally filled with fear, the Human felt inclined to deny this since she could feel the cold of the nightly wind through the thin material of her clothing.

"Throw her to me!" a green-skinned one yelled cheerfully, his black mane whirling in the wind.

"No, to me!" another voice yelled out. This came from another young Gargoyle who was also red-skinned, but taller and with a longer beak. This turned out to be one of the three young Gargoyles whom she had had the displeasure of meeting in the courtyard just moments ago.

"Don't you daAAAAAARRGHHHHHH...!" Katherine screamed, but already she felt the grip around her shoulders loosen and her body beginning to move in another direction, which quickly excelled as she began to fall...

"Ugh!" the green-skinned one commented, catching her. "You _are_ heavy!"

Katherine yelped, as the green one soared through the air with her in his grip. All around them, there were six young male Gargoyles cheering about excitedly, seven including the one currently holding her, all aching to see if one of them would be her next catcher.

"RELEASE ME AT ONCE!" she ordered, but all that earned was another outburst of laughter from her captors.

"As you wish, _Your Highness_… " the green-skinned one sniggered. "Who wants to hold our new sister next?" he then called out, and already there were six eager voices crying out for a chance to catch her.

"How's about giving me a go?" a new voice yelled. The Princess had a chance to look down to find the owner of the new voice, recognising him as the large aquamarine one of the Trio, before her current captor released her…

"YEEEAARRGGHHHHHHHHHH!" she screamed, as she fell a few feet to her waiting abductor's arms. But whether it was intentional or not, she ended up missing his clawed-hands altogether and landed on something else.

The large one had been gliding right underneath them, looking as though he was lying on the air, with his front facing them. When the green one released her, she fell right down to him, past his claws and fell face first into his stomach…

_**[BOING!]**_

That was the sound his stomach made when she fell right onto it. It acted as a sort of bouncy cushion, as she felt herself propelled back up into the air like a rocket, right into the claws of the green one who had just previously held her.

The green, spiked one looked at her in amazement for one second before breaking out into laughter, along with everyone else.

"Always knew that big belly of yours would come in handy one evening," the tall red one chuckled.

"HEY!" the large one objected.

The Human maiden only closed her eyes, hoping to not see when these creatures would finally drop her, when she heard a voice just beside her left ear.

"You weren't nice to our brothers, you know," the voice said, and opening her eyes the Princess looked into the face of the smoke-black Gargoyle whose beak was split into a wide grin. "But because we are now clan, we have decided to forgive and forget. In fact, as celebration in you becoming our new clan-sister, we have decided to give you your first _gliding lesson_!"

Since all the Human was able to do was stare at him, the smoke-black Gargoyle made a pirouette to the left while howling into the night.

"Throw her to me!" he finally shouted, some metres in the distance. "I _might_ be able to catch her!"

Since she couldn't stand the smile on the Gargoyle's face, the Princess closed her eyes, trying not to imagine how it would be like to fall to her doom, how the beasts would for sure feast on her remains...

"Here she comes!" she heard the Gargoyle holding her yell out, laughing as he began heaving her back and forth.

The Princess felt the claws of her captor once again loosen its hold on her, as she swung in the air until… nothing held her.

Katherine couldn't help but scream again, as the Gargoyle holding her released her again. This time, as a result of all the heaving, she ended up doing a perfect 3/60 as she felt herself fall head over heals before falling down to earth, wondering for the hundredth time if this would be the last time she would feel the wind in her face, and then...

Strong arms captured her. Arms that held her whole body instead of just her shoulders as the other Gargoyles had done before.

Katherine would still not open her eyes, as she valiantly prepared herself for whoever it was holding her to throw her up into the air again.

"You're safe," a deep but strangely welcome voice told her.

Katherine eyes slowly opened and found the one holding her to be none other than her 'husband' Goliath. His gaze and voice were both soft and attempting to be comforting, as she felt themselves slowly loose altitude.

Katherine didn't believe him until she felt him touch the ground, and she noticed that they had landed in the courtyard with various Humans and Gargoyles looking at them.

"Let me down," she tried to order, but it merely came out of her mouth as a weak request, something she hated herself for.

As soon as she touched the ground, her legs felt as weak as pudding and she needed to prop herself on Goliath's arm for a moment until she believed to have enough strength to stand on her own, but not for a moment longer.

Hearing the hated whooshing sound of wings, the Princess looked up to see her former captors, the seven young Gargoyles who seemed now to shrink under their leader's glare, landing. They landed together with the Clan-Second and the former leader, Othello and the Mentor, who were both even now giving each of the youngsters a much heated, white-flared glare.

Othello and the Mentor had been on the battlements discussing clan politics, the Second continuing to update his former leader on how the clan was faring now that Goliath had _finally_ stood up to his 'mate'. Everything had been going smoothly… until Othello looked up.

When he first saw the seven youngsters, Othello had thought nothing about it, as he knew what game they were playing. He himself and his rookery siblings had played the game they were playing when they had been young… which was basically a game of 'Catch' in midair. He hadn't even been bothered when he saw that they weren't using a ball to play the game with, as sometimes as a joke his siblings used to use the smallest sibling of their rookery as a ball.

However, when he realised that what they were playing Catch with was neither a ball nor a Gargoyle… _then_ he got worried.

The elder soon spotted them and recognised the Princess at once from the fine garments she was wearing. He knew Katherine would never willingly participate in anything with any of his clan, so he knew right away that was something was up… besides her.

Fortunately, at that exact moment, Goliath had just come out from the Castle, having finished temporarily with his Royal duties for the moment, wanting to check with his clan and also see how Katherine was dealing with the Gargbeasts.

He too quickly realised that something was wrong once he saw the youngsters and raced off the battlements, taking to the air and headed towards the combined quartet and Trio. He had just glided down in front of the smoke-black one when Katherine had literally fallen right into his arms.

Othello and the Mentor had followed their leader into the air, coming up behind the reckless youngsters, preventing their escape should they have attempted to make a glide for it.

The young ones now all shared the same look of worry, insecurity… and downright fear at their leaders and elder.

"They will be punished," Goliath promised, managing to give a look of comfort on her, and one of iron on the young warriors. "I promise."

The Princess wasn't interested in what her husband had just said. In fact she wasn't even really listening, as instead she turned and hurried back into the relative safety of the castle, leaving the Gargoyles outside alone.

Goliath watched her for a moment as she left, before turning back to the young troublemakers. He glared at them fiercefully, not even bothering to cross his arms as he usually did when he was mad, which showed just how furious he was now.

The night's events had gathered quite a crowd. Gargoyles who had been close by or on watch duty had glided down to the courtyard, and Humans who had heard all the commotion from inside the Castle had rushed out to see what was happening. Most of them had now left though, not wanting to intrude on something that to them was obviously best left to the Gargoyle clan to sort out.

The assembled youngsters gulped, their knees close to knocking, as they stared nervously at their leader who stood glaring at them, clearly waiting for an explanation.

"W-w-we w-w-were… " the brown-crested one of the 'Wild Four' began hopefully, stuttering as he did so. "…We were giving her a gliding lesson?"

Goliath's eyes flared bright white, revealing that this excuse was not acceptable...

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF THE TROUBLE YOU HAVE CAUSED TONIGHT?" Goliath's voice roared. "Years of planning, months of trying to get the Princess to see reason… all may have been lost tonight because of _you_!"

The young ones cringed.

"We meant no harm!" the red one of the Trio pleaded. "We spoke to her earlier, and we were only being friendly. We even offered to aid her with her duties in caring for the beasts, but all she did was throw our offer back in our faces. She called us vermin and even threatened to have us shattered during the day if we ever spoke to her again."

"So you decided to get back at her by tossing her around like a ball in midair?" Goliath demanded, still loosing his temper.

"No, not at first, but… " the beaked one began, but paused.

"But what?"

The leader of the Trio remained silent, the end of his beak sort of screwed up slightly, as he stared nervously at the ground.

"But then we came along," the brown crested one added. "They told us what had happened and we suggested that they get their own back by helping us play a little joke on her." He and the others were nervous enough as it was and they weren't keen to get into more trouble, but they weren't about to stand by and watch as their other brothers took _all_ the blame for their mistakes.

"A little _joke_?" Goliath's eyes seemed to glowing brighter by the second.

Deep down, he didn't know why he was so surprised at the prank of these youngsters. He had after all been putting up with them getting into trouble for years now. 'The Wild Four' were known for getting into the worst trouble, and the Trio were only slightly less bad, but this was the first time that the two gangs had teamed up to pull one together.

"We never intended to hurt her!" the smoke-black one insisted. "Just shake her up a little. Let her know what it was like to be afraid, like we are during the day. But we never intended any actual harm to come to her, _we swear_!"

"Maybe," Goliath admitted, but still not loosing his anger-filled look. "But no matter what your intentions, the fact remains that the Princess _thinks_ that you did intend her true harm! And now, after months of trying to reach her, we may never have a chance to do so again!"

Goliath swore. "From now on, all you seven will have increased chore duties, including taking over Katherine's duty of caring for the watchdogs. Seeing as she has already completed that chore for tonight, you will start that duty first thing tomorrow evening. As for tonight, you can clean out the stables from top to bottom, and once you've finished that you can then spend the rest of the evening together in the Rookery!"

All seven youngsters gasped and stared at their leader in shock and disbelief. Being sent to the Rookery was a punishment reserved only for naughty little hatchlings, not grown warriors.

"The Rookery?" the brown crested one and the tall red beaked one cried out. "Oh but… "

"And no dinner for any of you tonight!" Goliath continued.

The aquamarine one looked especially horrified at that part of the punishment.

"Ye heard our leader!" the old Mentor ordered, also looking furious at them. "Now get going! To the stables, all of ye!"

The seven of them groaned pathetically, as they begrudgingly made their way to the stables.

Goliath meanwhile just stood where he was, seething and wondering. He knew Katherine still hated him and his clan with a vengeance, but he really thought he had been making some progress with her. But now…

Now, who knew what her reaction was going to be?

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"It was horrible!" the Princess said, sunken in one of the chairs in the Magus's chamber, still in her dirty clothes and shaking slightly. "Their laughter, and the height we were at…"

The Magus in his usual white robes, having knelt beside her, held one of her hands comfortingly.

"Vile beasts," he cursed angrily.

"I don't know if I'll ever feel warm or safe again," the Princess shuddered, removing her hand from the Magus and embracing herself.

"I understand, My Princess," her sorcerer said, standing up. "Humans aren't created to fly... this is unnatural! If we could have just been able to stop them… "

A part of Katherine, that wasn't occupied with getting warm again, remembered that Goliath had indeed stopped them. She secretly wondered why he would have done that and then threatened to punish them afterwards? After all they were of his kind, he no longer had to act nice around her for the sake of his clan and he obviously bore no real love towards her.

If this had occurred a month or so ago she would have understood, because if something like that had happened she would have expected nothing less than for Goliath to get down on all fours and beg for forgiveness, but now… Now he had her Kingdom, her title and everything, so why should he continue acting friendly and diplomatic to her?

Katherine frowned. 'Could it be that…?' she thought, and then shook her head quickly; ridding herself of the ridiculous thought that he might actually have done what he did to help her.

She remained silent while a serving maiden brought her a cup of warm wine, bowed before the Princess and then left.

"If there were just a way to bypass my uncle's influence..." she spoke to herself, holding the warm cup to her lips and then suddenly remembered the maidens who had been joking about her behind her back.

'I should exile them all for that!' the Princess thought angrily. "Or perhaps even throw them in the dungeon…' But deep down she imagined that her beast husband would set them free anyhow, not allowing her to rule even her own servants. Suddenly, her memory remembered something else also…

"The Priests!" Katherine exclaimed, staring ahead and dropping the wine-filled cup.

"My Princess?" the Magus asked, still kneeling before her and looking surprised, even worried.

"Earlier tonight, I overheard one of my maidens speak about some English Priests who reside in the Wyvern's Inn not too far from the castle," she explained, standing up and thinking loudly. "If we can bring them here to see my situation, they will surely see how unholy it is and intervene on my behalf!"

"But your uncle…" the Magus said uncomfortably.

"He won't be able to do anything, Magus. Not if he wants to hold his alliance with the English anyway," Katherine exclaimed happily, beginning to walk up and down the room out of excitement, thrilled of the chance to finally be rid of this situation. "You know how they long to rid their land of these beasts, too! So they won't accept them as such here... "

"Are you really sure you want to take such drastic measures?" the Magus asked, far less convinced of this idea than was his ruler. "The diplomatic situation is complicated, and your uncle will no doubt be unable to deal with this easily."

The Princess looked out of the window, seeing beasts walking on the battlements and their masters gliding in the air... amongst them her former captors, now holding buckets and broomsticks.

"I am," she said icily, staring at the Magus. "Do what is needed to inform them and bring them here tomorrow. The sooner the better."

Still not entirely certain but nonetheless loyal, the Magus nodded.

"Good, I will return to my _husband_ so as not to make him suspicious," the Princess said, beginning to leave. "Oh Magus, you will see… Soon I shall be free again!"

The Magus watched her as she left his chamber, happy to see her spirits return, but still not too convinced of her plan.

He sighed, knowing that nevertheless she was the Princess, and he would go through Hell itself for her.

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**Next Day; Shortly After Sunset:**

The Captain of The Guard stood at the battlements above the Castle's gate. He had just assigned new watch-ro'tas to some of his guards and, he was happy to say, some of the Gargoyles, too. Since Goliath had now made them all official guards of the Castle, he had left assigning them their posts to him.

He smiled, as he had always hoped for the time when he would be able to treat both those of Goliath's clan and his own soldiers as equals. Now it had finally come to be and…

The sound of approaching horses reached his ears and he looked down from the battlement to see five riders nearing the castle. The leader of the group he recognised as one of the Castle's servants who was most loyal to the Princess, while the four riders following him wore long robes, identifying them as Priests... but their robes didn't identify them of the Scottish clergy.

'Strange?' the Captain, once known as Robbie, thought to himself.

"Hey, you!" he addressed the two guards at their post, or rather trying not to fall asleep at their post. "When did this man leave?" he said, indicating the approaching servant on horseback.

Both guards looked surprised and winced a little.

"Several hours ago," the one closest to the Captain said. "He said he was to get some English Priests from the Wyvern Inn."

The Captain's eyed widened. "By whose order?" he demanded.

"Princess Katherine, sir."

"And you didn't tell me?" the Captain shouted at them, on which both of them each took one step backwards.

"B-b-b-but..." one of the soldiers stuttered for an answer, but the Captain didn't care for it, noticing that the riders had already reached the gate, asking the guards for entry.

Turning around and leaving the still stumbling guards, forgetting them eventually despite swearing himself otherwise, he raced down to the courtyard where one of the last few groups of refugees still left were getting themselves ready to leave at daybreak tomorrow.

"But, mother!" a small blonde boy whined at a thicker woman, as he packed a carriage with some of the other people. "Morg told me you can see all the way to the end of the world from the highest tower."

"Forget it, Tom! I know you only want to see those beasts," the woman told her son sternly. "I didn't keep you away from them all these months just to allow it now!"

"But, mother, I heard they have eggs as big as dogs!" the boy grouched.

The Captain of The Guard paid this no attention and instead looked to the part of the courtyard where the riders were just dismounting... and in just this moment, the Princess arrived from inside the castle.

'She's been waiting for them,' he thought, as he watched her greeting the English Priests while her servant bowed to her and took the horses to the stables. 'God damn her!'

"Holy fathers, I summoned you here for I need your help in a most awkward and damnable situation," she said to the four Priests in front of her, with the Captain listening.

"Indeed, so it seems," the older and seemingly leader of the four, with a grey line of hair around his otherwise baldhead, said angrily. "I had heard that some of these beasts roam freely in this wild country, but _this_!"

With a wild gesture of his hand he pointed to the sky where two hatchlings, one female with red skin and long blonde hair and her rookery brother who was pale brown with two small horns were gliding around, chasing each other and laughing, and on the wall-walk there were several Gargoyles of various ages watching them.

"And this is just the surface," the Princess said with grim determination. "Let me tell you what I'm forced to endure..."

The Captain of The Guard closed his eyes briefly, as he listened to her complaints. What had been his, King Kenneth and the late Prince Malcolm's worst fear was now coming true. If the Church were to find out about Wyvern's new Prince, it could lead to…

Suddenly when he opened his eyes again, he noticed something rather important about these visiting Priests…

The seemingly leader of these Priests was an aged and, judging by his speech, a learned man, something that the Captain would have expected no less of such a man sent by the Church to be their emissary.

The other three Priests however were all of a much younger age. Neither of them couldn't have been anymore older than in their late teens.

This told him that these Priests were obviously not high in their Clergy, and the Church would never send mere boys to do something as important as diplomatic work, as they would send only their most experienced. It was most likely that these visitors were just lowly Priests sent to travel the Scottish roads, to spread 'The Word' as it were. It must have been just a case of extraordinary bad luck that their path had brought them to Wyvern's doors.

Discovering this, the Captain gained hope. If the Church hadn't in fact sent these men, and the Church was still in ignorance about Princess Katherine and Goliath's wedding, then there was still hope to salvage this.

Looking around, the Captain discovered the Magus holding the Grimorum close to him, watching the scene at roughly the same distance as he was himself, on the other side of the Courtyard, having a satisfied look on his face.

"This was your planning then," the Captain growled, as he walked over to the sorcerer.

"No, it was the Princess's," the Magus admitted, looking at the soldier with somewhat of triumph in his eyes. "And it was a good idea so it seems."

"Don't be too sure of that," the older man said, though it was more for himself, as he watched the scene unfold in the courtyard.

Just then a large shadow past over the two of them and soared down to the middle of the courtyard where the Princess and Priests now stood. The Captain didn't need to look up or be told whom it was…

The Gargoyle in question landed right beside the Princess, making everyone give way.

The Priests backed away in fear of the huge Gargoyle now in their midst. For one insane moment they thought the devil had risen from Hell to engulf them. They had rarely seen any Gargoyles on their travels, but even if they had, they doubted they would have ever seen one with this one's gigantic stature.

"I am Goliath," the Gargoyle said politely, "Prince and Regent of this castle and all its subjects. Whom can I hold welcome?"

The Humans surrounding him stayed silent for a moment, giving the Princess time to gloat, the Priests partly in fear and partly in surprise that this beast could speak.

"You are _married_ to her?" the older Priest asked, pointing a finger on the Gargoyle while his younger companions stood behind him. "And you dare to rule above Humans? What on earth gives you the right for such?"

Goliath looked at his wife for a moment, noticing her look of angry triumph, before looking back at the Priests.

"The late Prince of this castle ordered our marriage in his last will and testament," the large Gargoyle explained, though with a more cautious voice. "His brother the King affirmed it, as did the Church."

This caused Katherine to intervene.

"The Church followed my uncle's unwise wishes," she added. "But they did not know I was to marry a Gargoyle and… the _marriage_ was sealed by a former friend of my father in the Church."

"I see," the near bald Priest said calmly at first, but the look on his face was nowhere near calm. "I will personally intervene by informing _my_ King of this situation! Such an unholy union to have taken place is a perversion against not only both our countries, but against the Holy Bible itself! The fact that your uncle and King took part in this blasphemy is beyond words! Therefore both he and all who took part in this is will be excommunicated!"

"At once!" one of the younger Priests added, eager to say something on this matter.

This caused the Princess to loose the look of gloating on her face. Indeed she looked shocked at what the Priest had just said.

"The King was misguided, yes," she said quickly, pointing at the Captain of The Guard across the courtyard and at Goliath. "But it were these two here who obtained my father's trust by..."

"You will be excommunicated, too," the older Priest noted.

"What?" the Princess shouted, offended as her arm dropped. "I was forced to marry him against my will!"

"You could have resisted," the Priest replied, looking hard on her. "Many past martyrs have died for lesser reasons."

Katherine stared at him unbelieving, while Goliath turned to look angrily on her.

"See what you have brought upon us?" the Captain scolded the Magus meanwhile. "Did it ever occur to you that should the Church ever find out about the Princess' marriage, they would excommunicate not only she, but her uncle the King as well, for allowing it to happen in the first place?"

"I... I… " the Magus stuttered. "YOU and the others were the ones responsible for this happening! YOU forced her to marry!"

The Captain shook his head angrily. "It matters not who is to blame now! Whether you like it or not, the Princess is now married to Goliath, a Gargoyle warrior. If the English Church were ever to learn of this, they wouldn't care who started it, they would only see it, as you yourself just heard, as a blasphemous act against God! Anyone and everyone who was involved, including the Princess, would be disowned from the Church, ridiculed as a sinner and an insult to God, perhaps even burnt at the stake! And that's only what will happen to Katherine!"

The Magus gulped.

"If the Church discovered that his Majesty King Kenneth was involved, and that not only did he not stop it, but encouraged it," the Captain continued. "Then being cast off from the Church would only be the start! That would be the only reason the English would need to wage war upon us! Our whole country could be in danger now because of you and that dumb brat!"

The Magus stood there aghast, his mind processing all that the Captain had just said to him, and after quickly going through all the facts he knew the old soldier was right. The truth had been there all the time, but he had just been so blind for his love and loyalty to Katherine that he hadn't allowed himself to see the truth of the flaw in her plan.

Helplessly, he was forced to watch how the Priest further insulted his Princess. Goliath was at her side, but he said nothing to contradict the old Priest. This was most likely because he too was furious at her for going behind his back and for bringing this damnation upon them all.

What had supposed to be a chance for a better life for him and his clan was now turning into possible war and death for them, and the rest of Scotland, too.

'If I just could just go back and make all this undone...' the Magus thought, and a sudden realisation made his head rise and stare directly into the Captain's face.

"There might be a way out of this," he explained silently, giving the Princess a worried glance. "But I need you to do something for me first."

The Captain looked at him sceptically, while some metres away the situation seemed to escalate.

"I'm not in line with the devil!" Katherine shouted angrily. "I don't even want him anywhere near me!"

"Nor I her," Goliath replied, irritated.

His wife glared at him before turning back to the Priests, while the Captain silently approached the Gargoyle.

"_Goliath_," he whispered to him urgently. "_I have just spoken to_ _the Magus. He now knows the seriousness of this situation and wishes to help. He claims he knows a spell that will undo this night's fiasco, but he needs to speak with both the Princess and the Priests for this. So let the Priests be my problem for the moment, and let him talk with Katherine alone._"

Goliath looked behind him at the Magus who was busy searching through the Grimorum, then back at the Captain and nodded.

"This sin is for certain merely the first of many in this Kingdom," the older Priest began. "Long investigations will be needed… "

"For sure," the Captain agreed out loud, stepping closer to the Priest. "And we need them right now, for there is much more sin in this castle."

The Priest looked surprised at the thick man, probably noticing him for the first time.

"More than this?" he asked.

"I fear even deeper ones," the Captain lied, holding little respect for the Church, this Priest in particular.

The elder Priest looked at the Princess, interpreting her look as one of total surprise and another in one of guilt.

"Very well then," he agreed. "We will see what part of Hell this place has become."

With a respectful looking Captain leading the way, all four Priests entered the castle.

"What have you two planned?" the Princess demanded to know of Goliath, but the Gargoyle just turned and left to go up to the battlements, leaving the Magus to approach her.

"Magus?" Katherine demanded. "Tell me what is happening here at once?"

"My..." he began hesitantly until he was sure that Goliath was out of ear reach and no one else of the people was close enough. "My Princess, it was my idea."

"Your idea?" she asked him. "What idea?"

The Magus explained. "I will cast a spell to make the Priests forget," he said, meeting her eyes. "It will open their minds to my words, allow me to make them believe whatever I wish them to, and I will make them believe that you have a normal _Human_ noble as a husband."

The Princess stumbled a bit by these words.

"But..." she began and stopped. "But, Magus, if you can do this then you can make them believe, make them see that it is the beast's fault and not my uncle's, you could..."

She stopped when she saw the Magus shaking his head.

"Even if I did do that, it would make no difference," the Magus said sadly. "You heard the Priests for yourself, Princess. They care not who forced you into this terrible predicament. They care only that both you and your uncle went along with it, however unwilling you were, and thereby committing what they believe to be a great sin against their lord and God. This will give their countrymen all the incitement they need to declare war."

Katherine felt all the fight go out of her, as she realised that in her desperation to be free of her marriage she hadn't wanted to see that there was no way she could have achieved it this way.

"I have already made a bargain with the Captain and Goliath," he tried to explain, for once using Goliath's name instead of just referring to him as 'The Beast', looking away and holding the Grimorum stronger.

"So you conspire with them against me," the Princess replied, cold and angry.

"NO!" the Magus nearly shouted on her. "Never! I will always be on your side, it is just... just... I love you." He said the last part in nearly a whisper, but not so low that Katherine did not hear it.

Katherine looked on her most valued advisor, who was also her closest friend, as if a lightening bolt had struck her.

"Magus, I..." she began.

"It is all right, my Princess," the Magus said, not waiting for any further words and quickly opened the Grimorum to the right page with the spell he required, not daring to look in the Princess's face any longer. "Tonight was a mistake, but thankfully it is one I can rectify."

That being said, the Magus made one final check around the courtyard, ensuring that they were for the moment alone and then raised one hand…

"_Omnis conspecti, omnis auditi, memoro et dediscere aput meus imperium!" _the spell was cast. "_All who see this, all who hear this, remember and forget at my command!"_

The Grimorum suddenly seemed to glow, and blue lightening flooded in the night sky, lasting only for a few moments. Many of the castle's inhabitants inside raised their heads in surprise, expecting an oncoming storm, but when they went to look they saw nothing but a cloudless sky.

"Wh…" the Princess stuttered, while at the same time stumbling a bit and holding her head.

The Magus rushed to the Princess's side, looking at her eyes and seeing only confusion in them.

"You... " he began. "…You will remember nothing of the visiting Priests or ever hearing anything about them. You wanted to come out tonight for a short walk since the night was clear and calm."

The Princess's eyes remained confused for a short moment, but then they seemingly cleared, as realisation came into them. "Oh yes, yes," the Princess agreed, smiling a bit. "It is a nice night indeed."

"You had better go in now," the Magus added.

"You are right," she agreed once again, giving the Magus a smile before turning to leave for the castle doors.

Just as she was halfway inside, she stopped and turned back around to look at the Magus who had just begun to look at the sky.

"Magus?" she said.

"Yes?" he answered, surprised.

"I wanted to tell you that you are a great advisor and an even better friend," the Princess explained. "It is good to have you around in times as troublesome as these."

The Magus smiled. "Always, My Princess," he replied.

He watched her leave, staring for a long time at the door where she had entered the castle, and held the Grimorum close to his heart as though for comfort, to prevent it from shattering.

After a while, the Captain of The Guard arrived in the courtyard with the Priests following him.

"And this is, of course, the courtyard," the Captain told them. From the looks on the Priest' faces, it was obvious they had not enjoyed their tour all too well.

"Fascinating... " the elder Priest replied, sounding bored. "Well, now that our time has effectively been wasted, perhaps you would care to… "

"I shall take over from here," the Magus explained, stepping in. "Captain, you had better go see that your guards are all at their posts."

The Captain just nodded and left, leaving the Magus alone with the Priests.

"Was that lightning I saw just recently?" one of the younger Priests asked, looking up at the sky. "Strange that there's no clouds in the sky."

"I believe I can explain that," the Magus said, and once again opened the Grimorum after making another check around the still empty courtyard, now that the Captain had gone.

"What are… " the elder Priest began, perplexed.

"_Omnis conspecti, omnis auditi, memoro et dediscere aput meus imperium!" _the Magus quickly repeated the spell, casting it once more.

The same lightning as before reigned across the sky, but soon was gone. When it had vanished, the Priests all stood where they were, their faces as blank as their minds.

"You will remember nothing of meeting or seeing any of the Gargoyles here," the Magus began, giving one servant who had just then come outside to investigate the lightning a silent order to bring the horses around. "You were travelling and stopped here to replenish yourselves. You met the Prince who was indeed a good and noble _man_."

"Yes," the near bald Priest agreed, speaking slowly. "Indeed."

"There will be no need for you to say anything about him when you leave," the Magus continued. "But if you are asked, you will just say how good and noble he is."

"For certain we will," all the Priests simultaneously said, while in the background the servant had brought the Priest's horses to them.

"Then I wish you a good journey," the Magus said, handing the horse's reigns over to them. "It was nice here, but you will find no need to ever return or send someone here."

"Naturally not," the older Priest agreed once more, climbing onto his horse. "God be with you."

"And with you," the Magus replied, as he watched the Priests leave through the Castle's open gate, leaving confused guards behind them.

He watched them ride away for a while longer until he turned around and returned to the Castle, the Grimorum close to him, heading for his chamber...

Alone.

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"It is done," the Captain reported, as he approached Goliath and his Mentor.

The three of them all gave out a huge sigh of relief.

"You are certain they will have no memory of tonight?" Goliath asked, concerned.

The Captain nodded. "One thing you can count on from the Magus is his accuracy with spell-casting. If he says they won't, then they won't."

"Can we _trust_ him though?" the elder said unsurely. "I mean, he was the one who helped the Princess pull all this off in the first place."

"Don't worry," the Captain said assuredly. "He won't try anything like that again."

"I agree," Goliath concurred. "The Magus didn't fully understand the consequences of his actions until it was almost too late. He now knows what would happen if people beyond Wyvern were to learn about Katherine and me. I think I can safely say he won't try anything like this again. He maybe a fool sometimes, but he would never do anything that would risk war or bring harm to Katherine."

The others nodded in agreement.

"What shall we do about the lass though?" his Mentor then asked.

"What can we do?" the Captain noted. "Her memory's been wiped now, so even if we did punish her, she wouldn't remember what it was she was being punished for."

"Agreed," Goliath added. "So we will all just forget about it. However, I do believe we should keep a closer eye on Katherine from now on. It seems her hatred for me and her determination to be rid of me is even stronger than I first realised."

The former Gargoyle leader and the Captain nodded.

"Possible war, Katherine's never-ending ranting, over-preaching Priests," the Captain moaned. "With everything that's going on, it makes ye wonder what's going to happen next?"

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**One Month Later; Kincardine Castle; **

**Fettercairn/Scotland:**

Lady Finella paced the ground of the Drying House in anxiety.

"Keep calm, my love," her beloved Lord Constantine remarked. "It will all be over soon."

Finella nodded, not noticing the dark look upon her lover's face, and took a big breath to calm herself.

"Let me speak to him first," she then told him. "You will be too blunt… I don't want to hurt him."

The door of the Drying House started to slowly open.

Constantine put a finger to his lips to silence Finella, as he backed up to the wall at the side of the door, unnoticed.

A cloaked figure walked into the room, causing Finella some alarm, but she then gave a sigh of relief as she realised who it was.

"Oh, Your Highness," she said, bowing before King Kenneth II, son of King Malcolm I and brother to the late King Dubh and Prince Malcolm of Wyvern.

"I came as swiftly as caution would allow," he told her, taking her hands in his. He had long since been enamoured with the young beauty of this castle and had even proposed to her earlier that day.

'Mayhap with any luck," he thought. 'She has summoned me here to accept.'

"What is it you wish of me?" he asked.

"Your throne!" a new voice spoke up behind him.

Kenneth spun around and saw none other than his own ward, Constantine III, the son of his predecessor on the throne, King Cuilén.

Kenneth had won his throne through blood and sweat on the battlefield by bringing death to his foe, the tyrant Cuilén, who had seized the throne by killing Kenneth and Malcolm's older brother King Dubh. The tyrant King had died leaving behind one heir, his son Constantine.

Most new Kings would have executed their predecessors' heirs right after battle, and there had been a time when Kenneth had come close to doing it, but when the time came for him to deliver the killing blow… he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

Constantine had only been a small boy at the time of his father's death, and when he had looked up at him with those wide innocent eyes filled with terror, Kenneth's conscious refused him to complete the deed.

Many in his court tried to persuade him to go ahead with the execution, or at the very least banish the former Prince from the land, but Kenneth would not listen to them. He not only spared the boy's life, but took him in as his own ward.

A decision he was now living to regret.

Constantine came at the old King with a dagger, attempting to strike him down. The two men struggled against one another, Kenneth valiantly trying to knock the blade out of Constantine's hand, but alas the poor old King's strength was no match for the vigorous youth.

Finella gasped in shock, as the men fought.

"Aargh!" Kenneth's cry yelled out, as Constantine's dagger plunged into his heart, ending his life instantly, as he fell down dead.

All Finella could do was stand there against the wall, gazing in terrible shock at the sight that greeted her… The King lying in a growing pool of his own blood, and her lover standing over his body with the very weapon that had committed the unspeakable deed in his grasp, looking down in smug satisfaction at his victim.

"No… " she breathed then fell to her knees as the shock left her and she buried her face in her hands, sobbing her heart out. "No!"

Constantine stayed where he was, still looking down in grim satisfaction at his handiwork.

"The King is dead," he said, as though announcing it to the world, though none besides Finella could hear. He then reached down and removed the crown from Kenneth's head and placed it upon his own.

"Long live the King," he said, smiling.

**To Be Continued… **


	3. Chapter 3

_**All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company.  
No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder.  
All original characters are the property of Storyseeker and Hardwing.**_

_**This story was co-written with the great author Hardwing! Many thanks!**_

_**This fic saga is set in an alternate universe, in Wyvern's past, with characters from the Dark Ages Saga in TGS and some of Hardwing's own characters. It starts off right after the events shown in the show's episode 'Long Way To Morning' in 984 A.D. where the events in that chapter lead to a different conclusion for the clan. It is also set in the same timeline as the show in that era, with one small difference… and that's Goliath didn't get his name until just after 984 A.D.**_

_**Oh, and in case some people get offended at some of the sexist remarks in this saga… Please remember that it is set in the medieval ages.**_

_**Many thanks to Kimberly Towle for her suggestions, and to the author Aesop for all his proofreading.**_

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**Nightfall; Present; **

**Forests Outside Wyvern:**

Katherine panted as she ran through the thick bushes and outreached arms of the forest trees. She hissed as the sharp branches ripped off parts of her dress and scratched her exposed skin.

Still she pressed on as the sounds of horse's thundering hooves and blades striking the forest growth continued to echo behind her. Followed by the sound of voices in the distance…

"_Find her!"_

"_She can't be too far."_

"_Search that way!" _

"_Do not leave one inch of this forest unturned until you have found her! I want that wench back in my possession before the next few minutes pass!"_

Katherine gasped for breath, as she struggled to press on, running until she thought her feet would fall off. She was fortunate that the thick growth of this forest had slowed her oppressor's hunt long enough, giving her an able start to run from them.

She eventually found her way to a small lagoon with a waterfall, pausing only ever so briefly for a quick breath, but alas she had no time. She soon heard the drawing closer, searching for her.

She rushed behind a huge tree, holding her hands to her mouth to stifle the sound of her own breathing.

'Dear God in Heaven,' she prayed. 'Help me.'

As she stood there, praying for salvation and that the soldiers would never find her, she thought back on the last few months of her life and how she came to be where she was now.

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**Two and a Half Months Earlier; **

**Castle Wyvern:**

Princess Katherine walked the stone paths of the battlements, giving a small nod of acknowledgement to the guards as she past them by, sighing in boredom.

Since Goliath had usurped all her Royal duties, and because he had taken her one duty of beastkeeping and given it to those barbarian youths that had attacked her nearly a month ago, as punishment, she had been left with literally nothing to do.

Goliath had made some suggestions of other duties she could take part in, but she refused to listen to any of them. She was still fuming over the young savages.

She knew Goliath had punished them, something she was still puzzled over. Why would he punish anyone from his own clan when he no longer had to prove anything to her, now that he had her throne?

She was still asking herself that same question after almost a full moon, but still, she had no answer.

'Still,' she thought. 'They have no doubt finished their sentences long before now. Most likely they only had to do a single night, if not an hour, of standing in that stupid Rookery of theirs.'

She frowned, as she came to the stone steps and started walking back down them to the courtyard. As she neared the foot of them, she overheard the unmistakable voices of none other than the savage brutes in question.

"_I'm telling you, this has gone far beyond mere punishment. Now it's just plain cruelty!"_ the voice of the one with the shark-finned head spoke.

"_Oh, give it a rest, will ye?"_ the voice of the one, she believed, was the smoke-black one with the short beak.

"_What are you lot complaining for?"_ a tired voice, one that she couldn't remember whom it belonged to, said. "_You were the ones who got us all into this mess in the first place, don't forget!" _

"_I don't recall you protesting too much at the time when we were doing it!" _

"_Me neither." _

_"If I had known we were going to spend all these weeks scrubbing the stables, walking the hounds, gathering firewood, sharpening everyone's weapons, the cooking… Well, I actually enjoy the cooking…"_

Katherine recognised the last voice instantly as belonging to the large fish-like Gargoyle with the aquamarine skin.

"_You would!"_ another moaned.

"_Oh, quit complaining and let's get going!"_ the tired voice spoke again. "_We still have a load of chores to get through tonight, and if we want to finish them before daybreak then we'd better hurry." _

A chorus of groaning voices and moans arose, followed by the sound of clawed-footsteps as they walked dejectedly away.

"_I still say we have served our time more than long enough,"_ one of them grumbled.

"_Not according to Goliath we haven't." _

Katherine moved all the way down to the bottom of the stairs and looked around, sure enough seeing the group of seven Gargoyles who had assaulted her, making their way over to the stables, armed with buckets and broomsticks.

"They are still serving their punishment time?" she asked out loud in wonder. "But it has been nearly a whole moon now." Not even her own father had given her a punishment lasting any longer than one night. And she couldn't believe Goliath would bring about such a harsh sentence on those of his own kind.

"They will serve it a further several moons if they have to," a deep voice said behind her.

Katherine spun around in shock, grabbing her chest. "Do you always have to keep sneaking up on me like that?" she hissed at her husband.

Goliath shrugged his massive shoulders. "My apologies, Katherine," he said, his apology seemingly genuine though his voice sounded strained. She didn't know why, but for some reason Goliath had been acting rather harsh around her lately, even more so than usual.

The reason was, of course. because she had very nearly given the game away by summoning four English Priests to the castle, hoping for them to aid her in divorcing Goliath. As a result, their marriage had been found out, almost starting a war between Scotland and England.

The only reason they weren't being summoned to battle right now was because the Magus, with the Grimorum, had wiped the Priest's memories of the night's events along with Katherine's. So naturally she didn't remember a thing, but alas, Goliath did, and he was finding it hard to speak calmly with her, considering what she had almost done.

"I saw you from up on the tower," Goliath went on. "I saw you walking the battlements and noticed you were taking an unusually long time to come down the steps. I wondered if you were all right, so I glided down just to check. I'm afraid it's a habit of my people."

Katherine fumed, but inwardly, she was still a little confused.

She didn't know why she asked, as she kept telling herself that she didn't care, but deep down, there was a part of her that just had to know…

"Why are they still being punished?" she asked, even though that was not the real question she had in mind, it was close enough

Goliath looked at her curiously for a second before answering. "What they did was not only an insult to you, but an insult to our whole clan. They dishonoured themselves, our clan and all that we stand for."

Katherine scoffed at him. "And just what is it that you do stand for, Gargoyle?"

Goliath thinned his eyes at her. "We _protect_, Katherine," he replied. "That's it… We don't fight unless we have to and only when it is against those who would wish us or those that we protect harm."

"Pretty words," Katherine remarked. "But tell me, do _all_ your kind believe in them?"

Goliath sighed. "Katherine, I am not saying my kind is any more perfect than yours. Yes, there are probably Gargoyles out there who are just as bad as you have always believed. But they do not speak for the majority of us." He looked closer at her. "Tell me, would you say all _your_ kind are noble beings, dedicated to serving and protecting this land and all its creatures?"

Katherine opened her mouth, but shut it again, as Goliath had her there. She knew from experience that not all Humans were as noble as her family, something that the Archmage and King Cuilén, her uncle's predecessor on the throne, could attest to.

"Why are the seven brutes serving such a long sentence?" she asked in wonder, changing back to the original subject.

Goliath shrugged again. "Because this punishment isn't just to teach them the error of their ways, it is also to help make them _understand_ the error of their ways as well. Unless they learn from their mistakes, then they could very well repeat them once I let them go."

Katherine screwed her face up a little, not completely convinced.

"Believe me," Goliath continued. "I do not take pleasure in handing out punishment on members of my own clan, but I will do it when the situation calls for it. Those young ones had no right to do what they did, and they're paying the price for it. When we are convinced they have learned their lesson, they will no longer have to do anymore extra chores."

Katherine snorted. "Well, they had it coming… Though I would have thrown them in the dungeon and thrown away the key."

Goliath sighed. "Katherine… No matter what you think or say, these particular Gargoyles are not evil. They never intended you any harm…"

"No harm?" Katherine screeched. "What do you call grabbing me by my arms, taking me up to great heights and throwing me through the air like a rag doll, then? A friendly chat?"

Goliath shook his head, as though tired. "No, I call it youngsters playing a prank and not considering the consequences of their actions, like most children." He stared at her. "They are not evil; they are just young and impetuous. Like most young ones their age, not just in our clan but also in yours, they tend to act first and think later. And you were the one who technically started it all by insulting them earlier in the courtyard."

Katherine pouted, crossing her arms.

Goliath felt like screaming. "If you want to be treated more like the princess of this Castle, Katherine… then I suggest acting like one. Or at the very least, _like a grown up_!"

Katherine stared up indignantly at him. "How dare ye!"

"Don't start that with me!" Goliath shot back, his loud voice making Katherine step back. "You are even now behaving like a spoilt child! You relish in the thought that the ones who wronged you are being punished, taunting them, and won't even acknowledge the fact that you played some part in it. How exactly is that behaving like a mature adult?"

Katherine glared at him, and he glared back.

"I'm going to my room," she finally said. "Please refrain from going there the rest of the night!"

"With pleasure!" Goliath growled and turned to return to his post on the tower.

Katherine simultaneously made her way back into the Castle, heading towards her own room.

"And just so you know!" Goliath's voice shouted back down to her. "Come next week, you will be once more taking up chore duties along with the clan! So enjoy your free time while you can!"

Katherine hissed back at him and slammed the castle doors behind her.

0000000000

**The Next Night:**

"... and she said he is once again after the fisher's niece," one maiden said, soaping the Princess's clothes.

"So shortly after the marriage?" the second asked, staring at the Princess's green cloth. "What a naughty little beggar!"

"Yes, and they have the fruit of their love already," the other voice noted, somehow satisfied.

"Oh that," her fellow maiden added. "I heard she eats for three."

They laughed in union, darning the clothes.

These four maidens were the same ones that Katherine had heard gossiping months ago, unknowingly alerting her to the presence of the English Priests, who she had since forgotten.

These maidens were famous for their endless gossiping about the castle inhabitants, both the high and the low. Whether it was members of their own family, friends, people they didn't know or even those of the Royal family, these maidens seemed to have made it their ambition to talk behind the backs of all.

"What do you think the Princess and the beas... Sorry, _His_ _Highness's_ child would look like?" one of them asked.

"Can they even...?" the other replied. "I mean, could something come out of a union between her and... _him_?"

"Who knows?" the first said vaguely. "I heard the cook once say that some of His Highness's kind look more human than the rest of their race, because their ancestors once took Human women as their partners."

"Oh, that can't be!" the other exclaimed, lowering the clothes for a moment. "I mean, I would sooner die than _that_!"

"Just what we'd need," another muttered. "A demon infant on the throne. Could you imagine what kind of a Christening that would be?"

"And I had believed a woman would sooner die than to marry one of them," the other replied. "But then our Princess..."

Unbeknownst to them, just a corner away from where they were darning the clothes, the Princess was silently moving away.

She had been coming down to see whether her gown for the evening meal had been cleaned or not and had overheard large parts of this conversation.

This was the second time she had overheard those wretched Harpies gossiping about her and her private life, and although she had sworn to punish them the next time, should they do it again… she was too shocked to even think clearly about it.

Everything had all been forgotten when the thought of having a child with Goliath rose in her mind.

'It cannot be, please say it's not,' she prayed, thinking to herself. 'But even if it is, it is his right as my husband... '

It had been her worry on the first night of her marriage, the thought of bearing a child with that oversized monster. She knew there had never been a case of a Human and Gargoyle ever conceiving a child together, but then again there had never been a case of a Human and Gargoyle ever actually mating together either, so who was to say it wasn't possible? For all she knew, Goliath might make her lay a hundred eggs.

She had been terrified of the first night with her newly wedded husband, but Goliath had shown no interest in _this_ aspect, seemingly being content with robbing her of her castle and usurping her throne.

'But what if he isn't content?' the Princess thought, walking down some stairs to reach her quarters. 'What if this is just a ruse to lower my guard until such time when he believes I will get used to this idea?

Katherine reached the end of the stairs and walked down the corridor to the door leading into her quarters. Fortunately for her, Goliath was not there as she entered. He must obviously still be busy with castle affairs.

"Affairs that were once mine to worry over," she grumbled, feeling fresh anger at the usurper, happy for the chance to take her mind off the… _other thing_.

Katherine yawned then, stretching her arms out. She had still not gotten used to the late nights and sleeping during the day. If not for the stone-sleep, she would wonder how Gargoyles did it.

Dinner was still a few hours away and she had no new chore duties. Goliath had yet to assign any to her. That he would do until next week.

She decided to take a short nap.

0000000000

A few minutes had passed and the Princess turned around desperately in her bed, as dark thoughts invaded her sleep.

"_What do you think the Princess and His Highness's __**child**__ would look like?"_

"_I mean, could something come out of a union between her and... __**him**__?"_

_"I heard the cook once say that some of his Highness's kind look more human than the rest of their race because their ancestors once took Human women as their partners."_

"_A demon infant on the throne… A demon infant on the throne… A demon infant on the throne…"_

Katherine moaned as she dreamt.

_Katherine woke up in bed and heard shattering glass outside her door._

_"What…?" she moaned, as she got up to investigate, opening the door as she did so. When she did, she had wished she hadn't…_

_She found herself within her own Great Hall, which was now completely filled with Gargoyles. _

_All around her, she saw swarms of little Gargoyles that looked like smaller versions of the present adults in the clan. They laughed, snarled, and growled as they played around the hall, swinging from the chandelier, wrestling and chasing each other. _

_Katherine screamed, as what the Gargoyles called their hatchlings raced around the room, destroying all of her family heirlooms. _

"_Stop it!" she yelled at them. "How dare you come in here! Who gave you permission?" _

_The hatchlings all paused in their activities, staring curiously at her. "You did, Auntie Katherine!" they all said in chorus. _

_Katherine stood and stared at them. "Wha…?" she stuttered. _

"_All right, lads and lassies," a rough voice called out. "Time for your lessons, come along now!" _

_Katherine turned and saw the former leader and mentor of the clan standing in the doorway, signalling the children to come and follow him. _

"_What is this?" she demanded. "Why are you here?" _

_The elder just shrugged at her. "What any good grandfather would do, playing horsy with his grandchildren." He then got down on all fours and trotted away with a few of the hatchlings on his back, the others excitedly following him. _

_Katherine just stood there stuttering before she turned and ran to one of the other rooms, calling out for any guards to come and help her._

_What she found instead, was a castle full of nothing but Gargoyles. _

_Everywhere she went, she found all her usual castle subjects gone, replaced with some of the clan._

_In the chapel, she found the clan's old storyteller telling some of the hatchlings tales of the clan's past. In the kitchen, she found the large aquamarine youngster cooking at the stove, and of course sampling it as he did so. And in the courtyard, where she would have usually found the Captain instructing his soldiers, she found the Clan-Second instructing his warriors of the clan… Everywhere she went, where she should have found a Human working, she found one of the clan instead. _

"_WHERE IS EVERYONE?" she yelled. _

"_We're all here," the Gargoyles answered her. _

"_NO! Where are the Humans?" _

_The Gargoyles surrounding her just laughed. "Why, they're all gone of course! None of the Humans wanted to remain, so they just packed up and left." _

_Katherine just stood where she was in shock, and then tried running past the crowd of Gargoyles that had gathered from nowhere. _

"_Do you want to come finish the gliding lesson some night?" the tall green one with the long spikes asked her, as she sped past. _

"_Lass, don't forget your chores!" _

"_The watchdogs need their walk also!" _

_Katherine didn't listen and just continued running until she found herself back at the door to her room. She found her usual bodyguards standing where they usually stood, only now they were Gargoyles. _

"_Hail to the Princess!" one said who had now been turned into a pale green-skinned Gargoyle with large tusks for teeth and small wings. _

"_Long live Katherine the First!" the other added, but with blue skin, four wings and exceedingly large talons on his hands and feet. _

_Katherine sped past them, racing into her room and slamming the door behind her. _

_For a moment, all seemed quiet and normal._

_Then…the crying sounded. _

_Katherine turned around and saw a small cradle lying in the centre of the room, the same one that both she and her father had once laid in when they had been wee babes. _

"_No…" Katherine breathed. _

"_Returned so soon, My Love," the deep voice of Goliath asked behind her. _

_Katherine spun around and saw the clan-leader lying on her bed in the shadows. _

"_You!" she shouted at him. "You did this! You took my home, my throne and my very dignity from me! Now, you have condemned me to live alone in this God forsaken castle, alone for the rest of my days!" _

_Goliath frowned and stood up. "But you are not alone…I am here with you." _

_It was then that Katherine noticed that he was naked, as he walked toward her. _

"_KEEP BACK!" she screamed. "YOU WILL NEVER HAVE ME!" _

_Goliath cocked his head. "But, My Love, I have already had you… see?" He pointed to the cradle in the middle of the room, which had even now begun shaking, as something inside it began rolling about, hissing and snarling. _

_Katherine backed up against the wall. "No!"_

_"Yes," Goliath said, beaming as he went over and picked whatever was inside up in his arms. "Come meet our little bundle of joy, and Wyvern's future…a proper little heir!" He turned back the cloth that was draped over the baby's face._

_Katherine screamed when she saw it, as the baby was nothing more than a tiny version of Goliath with no hair, but with just as many fangs._

_The baby looked at her and smiled a very toothy smile. "Ma…ma!" it hissed._

"NOOOOOOOO!"

Katherine screeched as she woke up, this time for real. She checked all around her room, but sure enough found no cradle or any sign of anything she had just experienced in her nightmare.

"It was just a dream," she repeated into her head. "It was only a nightmare, just a bad dream, nothing more…"

A loud knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts.

"W-w-who is it?" she asked, stuttering only slightly.

"It's me, Samuel, Your Highness," one of her bodyguards replied through the door. "Forgive me, but I heard a noise. Are you well?"

"Yes," Katherine told him, sighing as she did so. "That noise you heard was just I. I was having a bad dream, nothing more."

"Very well, Your Highness," the guard said, satisfied. "Oh, will you be going down for dinner tonight? Only the time is getting on and the meal will be starting soon."

"Yes, I will be going down shortly, thank you," Katherine replied, and walked over to the commode to freshen up. The dress she was wearing was sufficient enough for dinner, so all she required was a quick wash.

As she poured some water into her basin, she pushed all thoughts of the dream out of her head. The memories of the Hatchlings, the baby and all her people having abandoned her soon evaporated.

'Just a dream,' she repeated in her head.

Suddenly, she heard a noise from outside her balcony window.

'Damn him,' she thought, thinking it must be Goliath. 'Does he make checks on me whenever I do not show up for dinner now?' She wiped her face and went over to draw back the curtains across her window.

She drew back the curtains, and…

"YEEEEAAARRGHHHHHH!" she screeched, as she found several Gargoyle Hatchlings staring at her through the window glass, Hatchlings almost exactly like the ones in her dream.

She screamed one final time, believing her nightmare to be coming true, and fled through her bedroom door.

The Hatchlings in question stared curiously at the door where she had run through.

"What happened?" one of them asked the others. "Did we scare her?"

"Don't be silly, she's the leader's mate. Leader' mates don't get scared."

"This is all your fault! You were the one who suggested we come up here to spy on her!"

"We weren't spying on her! We were just taking a peek to see where she slept… How was I to know she got that scared easily?"

0000000000

**Half An Hour Later; Great Hall:**

The meal in the Great Hall was as rich as ever, as the inhabitants of the castle began tucking in. Most of the Gargoyles and Humans still seemed to sit on either sides of the Hall, but at least several Humans who had once avoided them were now sitting with the clan, wanting to get to know them better.

At the head of the large table, still a strange sight but one both sides were slowly getting accustomed to, sat the Prince and his wife. The latter was even colder than ever, as Goliath had noticed the last couple of nights, though luckily the Human to his left, one of the Captain's lieutenants, seemed to finally be growing accustomed to him.

It was a sign of success, though the Gargoyle could clearly smell the odour of alcohol on his breath, which was probably the cause of it.

"... so I cut this bandit of Roland's group the whole of his left arm off," the Human said, holding a bottle out to the Gargoyle Prince. "Took three of them prisoner from their campsite on the night we fought… "

Goliath wanted to deny the bottle of wine that the Human was holding out to him. It wasn't because he had never had a drink before, as he often drank ale or the odd wine, but it was because he knew this wine he was being offered was not the usual stock that he was used to. Some of the soldiers had decided to open up a barrel of one of Wyvern's finer and more _exotic_ wines.

He didn't know what it was called, but whatever it was, it was far more potent stuff than anyone in his clan was accustomed to, particularly him. Fortunately, since the soldiers responsible had only opened one barrel, there was only enough for a small selection of people, consisting of them, him and the Captain.

The Captain was far more used to potent drinks than he, so he didn't seem too concerned with it, and appeared to be holding up well. It was the same for the soldiers, the only exception being the one whom he was talking to, and that was because he had begun binging on the wine the second they had opened it.

There had been a time once, when he was younger, when he had gone down into the forest with his Rookery brothers, getting their first taste of alcohol, getting drunk and singing merry. But that was a long time ago, and he had only gone a few times anyway and had stopped going completely after he became Clan-Second because he didn't think it was appropriate for a Second to act so.

He also knew what alcohol did to a person, which his former leader could attest to, as he remembered what his Mentor had looked and acted like the night when he had come home after some '_happy time'_ with his Human friend at the local inn.

Goliath shuddered. He still had bad dreams about that whenever he thought of his Mentor staggering back to the castle. He was only too glad that his Mentor had lost consciousness, before he took off his loincloth and started singing on the battlements like some of the youngsters had done when they had one too many drinks.

Still, it was a sign of success after all these months of trying to reach the Humans, and he didn't want to seem rude or appear weak in front of his fellow warriors, and just one cup of wine couldn't hurt, could it?

After giving his 'comrade' permission to fill his cup, Goliath continued to listen to his newfound friend's wartime stories, which became more and more disoriented as he gulped each mouthful of wine down his throat.

"Moressshhhh?" his new friend slurred, holding the bottle to him again.

Goliath blinked, as his vision blurred, but nodded. He held out his cup, which the man shakily filled once again, though not without getting most of the wine on the table as he did so.

Goliath gave a snort of laughter, as the man made a small joke that he hadn't even heard.

"Squiffy?" the man asked, filling Goliath's cup yet again, this time without even asking him if he wanted him to.

"Me, squiffy?" Goliath sniggered. "I'm afraid it will take a lot more than just a mere couple of cups to get me, or any Gargoyle warrior, down."

Normally this would be true, but because it had been several years since Goliath had last tasted any _strong_ alcohol, his body was unaccustomed to it, and was now paying the price.

Goliath gulped down the contents of his cup in one big swallow, and then held the cup out to his Human friend again. "Fill' er up!"

Minutes later, when the Human had finally left the table, or rather when his friends had carried him away, Goliath had consumed more than seven full goblets of wine.

His mind in a complete haze from all the drink, Goliath drunkenly turned to his wife and Princess.

"So my lovelyyyyy... wife," he began, his mouth not being able to form the word properly, hiccupping as he did so. "Enjoying the night's festivities?"

"Umm," Katherine started to reply, unsurely. She was still so engrossed at having Goliath's clan in the Great Hall, and still refused to look at any of them, that she hadn't even noticed that her husband had been drinking.

Goliath picked up his cup, saluting Katherine. "To you, my beloved wife!" Goliath declared, and downed the last of the wine within it. "May we be blessed with many happy years… or in our case… just years." Goliath laughed out loud at that, gaining a few odd looks from the crowd.

Katherine looked embarrassed, as she smiled nervously.

"Sooo… " Goliath started again, his voice still slurring. "Since watching the wee beasties was too exciting... what about taking care of the wee eggs?"

"The eggs?" Katherine asked, not knowing what was more unbelievable, the way this Gargoyle was drunk or the newest _chore_ he wanted to torture her with.

"Yes, our youngest ones, the wee bairns, the Gargoyles yet to be hatched," Goliath replied, laying a bit too much emphasis on it. "I've talked with the Rookery Mothers, the ones who don't have their heads under their tails that is, and they agree... Well, _mostly_ agree on this… "

"But… why…?" Katherine began asking, wondering why they would give her such a chore. She knew the Gargoyles valued their young above all else, so why would they entrust such an important task to her?

Goliath didn't seem to answer, his mind too hazy and too drunk to comprehend anything being said to him, as he immediately started talking again, seemingly picking up where he had left off.

"They can be a bit stuffy when they want to be," he continued, seemingly talking about the Rookery Mothers. "But just remember… their tails are worse than their bites… No, sorry, that's their dog… Well, something anyway."

Katherine never thought she'd hear herself thinking this, but she actually preferred Goliath when he was himself, without the effect of drink on his mind.

"You know," Goliath said slowly, shuffling around on his seat, which creaked loudly in protest at his excess weight. "They tried to talk me out of it… but I don't think so." Goliath grinned at her. "I think it would be good for you to work with our children… Just think… Maybe working with the young will get you thinking about having children of your own someday… " he said as he patted her knee under the table, not thinking on what he was doing.

Katherine looked at him in shock, something that her husband didn't notice in his current state.

'He wants to prepare me to carry his child!' the thought raced through her suddenly terrified mind.

"I won't go down to that stupid Rookery and help clean a bunch of stupid eggs!" she exclaimed.

Goliath blinked, his mind still terribly dizzy, but he had heard and understood enough… Once again, she had treated him and his kind with contempt, she had rejected every one of his attempts to be friendly, and now… Now she had offended even the very eggs of his clan.

Growling, Goliath rose from his throne, almost knocking the table forward, rising high above the small Princess… This caused Katherine to move back in her seat, afraid, but Goliath didn't give her a chance to run, as he grabbed her by both sides and lifting her high above him.

"Let me down, you barbarian!" Katherine shouted angrily, kicking her legs like mad, trying to kick the lavender giant's stomach, but it was like kicking a stonewall.

Some of the Hall's inhabitants sniggered at the sight, as they watched Goliath holding his mate in front of him, like how an angry parent would with his child.

Goliath then flipped Katherine over his right shoulder, carrying her as he would a killed game animal.

"PUT ME DOWN!" Katherine demanded, drumming with her fists on Goliath's back, which he hardly noticed… but nevertheless, because of the drink, made him retaliate with a move of his own.

"I SAID... OHH!" Katherine squealed, as she felt something slap her bottom.

"Keep doing what you're doing," Goliath's voice said to her. "And I'll sit down right here, in this Hall with all these people staring at us, turn you over on my knee and give you a spanking you'll never forget!"

Katherine blushed brightly in embarrassment but kept silent.

"My wife is tired and needs to go to bed now," the Gargoyle explained to the gathered Humans who were quite shocked, at least the ones who weren't completely drunk.

While the married couple left, with the Princess still cursing loudly over Goliath's shoulder, the Humans still watched.

"Well," one of the Guards, standing watch at the Great Hall's large door, said to the other with a wicked smile. "That is what I call one way, or quite possibly the _best_ way to lead a marriage."

The two of them guffawed, quickly followed by the rest of the crowd as they joked about all they had just seen.

Meanwhile, the moment Goliath and Katherine had left the Great Hall, Katherine had instantly started shouting and cursing again, demanding to be released.

"Ah quit your whinging," Goliath belched, his stomach churning slightly, as he walked quickly up to their room, opening and shutting the door behind him.

"RELEASE ME AT ONCE!" she ordered.

"To command…" Goliath began, and then dropped Katherine right onto her bed, "… is to obey." He finished.

Katherine glared at him. "Be gone from my room, foul beast!" she commanded.

Goliath laughed with his hand-claws on his hips. "_My_ room, don't you mean?"

Katherine's glare never ceased, but there seemed to be a touch of fear in them as well for some reason, but Goliath didn't notice… mainly because he had other things on his mind just then.

Goliath moaned as he felt a fresh wave of dizziness come over him, his head feeling like it was turning wildly in a storm. He struggled to stay standing, as he swayed uneasily on his up-turned clawed-feet.

At that moment, he envied Humans for their flat feet.

Katherine at that moment was absolutely terrified and with good reason. There she was, locked in her room, lying on her bed, with Goliath standing right before her at the foot of the bed, looking as though he was getting ready to pounce.

'This is it,' she thought with terror. 'He's going to do it tonight. He's going to take me as his, and there's nothing I can do about it!'

"Get out!" she hissed. "Get out now, I order…!"

"Ughhhh…" Goliath groaned, and lost his balance.

Katherine shrieked, as Goliath's huge body suddenly fell down on her. With less than a second before his enormous weight would have crushed her, she rolled over to the side, dropping herself onto the floor, just as Goliath crashed onto the mattress...

Katherine paused for a moment, breathing in stunned shock, until she heard the deep snores of the clan-leader coming from up on her bed.

"Oh no!" she declared, and got up to whack the massive Gargoyle's shoulder. "Remove yourself from my bed at once, now! Do you hear me? GET OFF!"

But Goliath neither protested nor complied, as he just continued snoring, the alcohol having driven him completely unconscious.

Katherine continued for a few minutes, whacking him across the shoulder, and even hitting him on the head with one of her pillows, shouting and commanding him to wake up and remove himself from her bed… but it was all for nothing. The alcohol in the wine had done its worst.

Katherine briefly considered calling in her guards to have them remove him, but in the end she thought better against it. She would hate to think what sort of gossip it would cause around the castle if any of her guards spread anything about what they saw in here. She could only just imagine what those nattering maidens would say about it.

Katherine seethed in frustration, grabbed a couple of pillows from her bed, along with an extra blanket from the wardrobe, and settled down to sleep by the fireplace where it was warmest.

"Wonderful night," she muttered bitterly. "Just wonderful. What else could possibly go wrong?"

No sooner had she said that…

"ZZZZZZZZZ!" Goliath's snores seemed to increase in volume, each breath giving off a sound louder than a hundred horns.

Katherine clenched her teeth, as each snore seemed to shudder the entire room.

"I had to ask," she moaned.

0000000000

**The Following Night; Sunset:**

The sun had passed, and once more the cloak of nightfall awakened the castle's sleeping Gargoyles, healed and re-strengthened… save for one.

Goliath had awakened in his usual style, roaring as he shed his stone-skin off, but the instant he was fully awake, he immediately groaned and held his head painfully.

He pulled himself off the Royal bed; only for a second wondering what he was doing there before remembering last night and instantly felt a fresh headache coming upon him.

Rubbing the temples of his head, hoping to ease the pounding within, Goliath remembered that not all wounds or such could be healed by a good day of sleep, something that the former leader of his clan had learned also.

"Still feeling your celebration from last night?" a cold voice asked him from behind.

The regent of the castle stiffened and rose to full height, in an effort to restore his dignity, while turning around to face his wife.

"Yes," he admitted, looking at her straight in her face. "Are you well?"

Katherine's eyes became smaller. "Depends on how well you think being humiliated in front of my own people, carried to my room like a hunted Boar, terrified, and then forced out of my own bed by _you, _is?" she said accusingly.

Goliath winced. "I am terribly sorry about that, Katherine," he said honestly. "Had I been in my right mind, I would never have acted so vilely. I suppose I am not so used to strong wine, as the soldiers are."

"I'm sure," Katherine replied icily. She was angry, make no mistake about that, but deep down she was also ashamed, though not because of Goliath. Because, although she hated to admit it, she knew that last night's fiasco was not his fault.

Goliath undoubtedly would not have done what he did last night if not for those wretched soldiers. He was only the way he was because of that powerfully potent drink he had gotten hold of through her own soldiers.

Those same soldiers, although they had done nothing really wrong, were now serving time at her insistence by doing extra guard-duty and other such meaningless tasks.

Goliath sighed. "Are you ready to face your chore?" he said finally. He had difficulty trying to remember all the previous night's activities, but he recalled he had spoken to her about that particular subject, because he had been planning to all night.

"I'm curious," she began sarcastically. "Since you spoke so highly about punishments in your clan, then tell me… how do you handle someone who got drunk _**and**_ mistreated his wife?"

'Severely,' Goliath thought, noticing the sound of someone coming up to the door of the room.

"I'm sorry if I scared you," he said instead, crossing his arms and ignoring the slight swindle he felt. "But that changes nothing for tonight. Now, once again, are you ready for your chore?"

Katherine's eyes stared at him in defiance.

"What if I say no?" she asked.

"Well, if you insist, then there is another clan tradition you can do instead?" Goliath began. "It is where the younger ones must help the elders in their bathing."

The Princess's eyes grew wide and her mouth nearly dropped.

"I am certain my old Mentor and his Rookery siblings would be grateful for the help," Goliath continued. "They have trouble reaching their back-ends lately."

Although Goliath's face was as stoic as ever, she swore she could see the outline of a smirk on him.

Her husband waited for an answer.

"Where is the Rookery, then?" she asked through clenched teeth.

"We will meet down in the courtyard," Goliath replied, his arms still crossed.

Katherine looked at him for a moment longer in total anger before she turned to leave, only to discover the elder, who had failed to save her father's life, standing in her way.

"Out of my way!" she hissed and nearly spat at him.

The former leader did so, knowing there was little point in arguing now, and was soon left alone with Goliath.

"An interesting tradition," the elder said, bemused. "Funny I've never heard of it, lad."

Goliath didn't comment, for they both knew that clan members often took baths communal and that there was hardly ever an elder in need of, or even willing to accept, the help of anyone, let alone a young one.

"I am running out of ways to deal with her, old friend," the leader admitted with a sigh, feeling weariness in his head, something that had nothing to do with his hangover. "I am making progress with nearly all the other Humans in the castle, but with her, it seems I will have to fight her forever."

"You knew, as well as we did, that it wasn't going to be easy, lad," the mentor said, laying a claw on his leader's right shoulder. "She's spent most of her life believing the lies that Human fear and bigotry has spread about us and our kind. You can't expect her to abandon those ideals overnight? But do not despair, lad… for even if you haven't made progress with her, take comfort in the fact that you have made progress for your clan, for us all! And _this_ _**is**_ something you should be proud of."

Goliath remained silent for a moment, fighting the feeling of weariness, and looked out the window of the balcony, watching as the youngest members of his clan soared through the air.

He watched them for a minute, envying them for their innocence and total obliviousness to the responsibilities beyond their own personal world of fun and games. What he wouldn't give to be young again, to not have to worry about the safety of his clan, to deal with every suffering problem of the castle, and most of all… not have to deal with the almost constant nagging of his wife.

"Maybe," he admitted. "But I had better go to my wife now. Until later, my Mentor."

With this, the large Gargoyle stepped out of the Royal bedroom, onto the balcony, and began to glide down, his Mentor watching him from above.

As he soared down to the courtyard below, the Princess greeted her husband, in her own special way, when he thus landed…

"Do you take pleasure in making me wait?" she told him.

"I had an important matter to attend to," he simply replied, stoically, and began to move. "Follow me."

Katherine wanted to protest, but Goliath was already walking on ahead, and she knew screaming after him wouldn't help. She shortly considered the option to just storm away, but she remembered how fast this beast was and how he had _transported_ her the last time… NOT something she wanted to repeat.

Believing that her dignity couldn't stand a further episode of such, the Princess followed him.

Finally, they arrived at a distant part of the courtyard where an older Gargess was seemingly waiting for them. She appeared to be one or two generations above Goliath's. Her skin and hair were a dirty grey colour that the Human found repulsive, and as the Princess noticed, the female was studying her angrily.

"Show her around and instruct her," Goliath ordered her calmly. "As we discussed."

"My leader," she replied calmly but icily, turning to him with the same look she had given her, making Katherine realise that she was not the only one to be unhappy with her being in the Rookery.

"Come!" the Gargess told her, as Goliath turned to leave. The old one started to walk down to the large gates that were almost hidden, which the Princess had only seen a few times herself, and had had little interest or paid even littler attention to.

It was only after she had opened one of the gates, leading both of them into what Katherine thought seemed like a grave, that the Gargess turned around suddenly, staring straight into the Human's face and nearly making her take a step back in fear, something which she would have done if not for the Gargess's claw that grabbed her left hand, squeezing it hard.

'They've sent me here to be fed to their young!' Katherine thought in panic, but already the Gargess had opened her mouth to speak.

"Listen, Human!" the female began. "Not one of us Rookery Keepers agrees with the leader in letting you down here, but it was his order to do so, so you may stay. But I don't care if the Humans call you maiden, Princess, or even the Queen of Scotland herself. If I find even a single scratch on any one of the eggs that you take care of… _you are __**dead**__!_"

The Rookery mother neither shouted these words nor even raised her voice, but in a way she didn't need to. For the way she emphasised every word, and the look she gave the Princess, got the message well and truly through... though it was not needed, for Katherine could see the truth of them in the female's eyes.

The Princess nodded.

"And I _will_ check on every single egg you look at," the female added in a more calmer tone, letting loose Katherine's arm and resuming her way down into the cave, followed by an even more reluctant Human.

Descending slowly, the Princess's eyes gradually got used to the darkness… or rather half darkness, for there were layers of moss growing all around the cavern, which seemed to glow in the darkness, illuminating the cave.

As she looked down into the cave, she saw a mass of around thirty eggs, all lying within a bed of dirt, moss and straw. And between them, she saw some more Gargoyles who were all looking at her with faces nearly as angry as that of the female who had led her here.

"Come on!" the mentioned female called her from farther down. "We don't have all night!"

Angry, but determined to bear her fate with dignity, Katherine walked down into the darkness.

There were seven Gargesses in total within the cave, including the female who had brought her here. They all ranged from different ages, but most were all in their more mature years… and none looked too happy to see her.

"There are thirty-six eggs down here, Human," the elder female informed her. "Each Rookery Keeper helps out by taking care of five eggs, but never the same ones night after night. One of us cares for five eggs on one night, and then another five on the next, but never the same five every night. Understand?"

Katherine just nodded. She knew that each Gargoyle looked upon all their clan's children as their own, a tradition she found most curious above them all. She couldn't understand how or why any Gargoyle couple would willingly give up their child to the whole clan.

"Since there are seven of us here," the female continued. "Not including you, then that means there is an odd egg out. For now, you will only have the responsibility of caring for one egg. Do you think you can manage that, _Your Highness_?"

Katherine glared dangerously at her, but simply replied… "Yes."

The elder nodded. "Very well. Select an egg then. It doesn't matter which one you pick, as they are all equal, even the ones that will bear beasts."

'Oh, wonderful,' Katherine thought sarcastically. 'Apparently I've gone back to beastkeeping after all then.'

Katherine moved up closer to the nest, a little nervous from all the hard glares and hawk-like stares that were being thrown her way. None of them were taking their eyes off her, for fear of her damaging the eggs.

She stopped at the one egg closest to her. At least, she didn't need to ask them what to do next, for by growing up in a castle filled with Gargoyles, and her father being close friends with them, she knew much about their species. Her father had insisted she learn as much about them as she could, starting with the basics… egg-keeping.

She reached down and carefully picked the egg up in her arms, turning it around softly. She remembered her father telling her that Gargoyles eggs needed to be turned regularly or else they would crack too soon.

"Be careful with that!" one of the other females practically snarled at her. "You drop it, you die!"

"I know!" Katherine replied, frustrated. She could tell it was going to be a great deal of _fun_ working with these ladies.

0000000000

**One Month Later; Kincardine Castle:**

Constantine, now self-proclaimed King Constantine III, sat on his throne, idly twiddling his fingers as he awaited news…

Just then, the doors to his courtroom opened, and five robed figures walked in.

The guards on duty made no move to stop them, as they knew who they were… Constantine's own private sorcerers. There was not a man smart enough, or dumb enough, to go up against them… not unless they wanted something unnatural to happen to them.

Little was known about these mages, except that they had come to Constantine some time before he had risen to power. They had promised to aid him in securing his right to the throne, which they had apparently now done, and in return he would help them by getting something for them… but whatever that thing was, was known only to the mages and Constantine.

"My lord Constantine," one of the robed figures greeted him, as he entered the room.

Constantine stood up to attention, bowing respectfully before the five mages, as he looked at them anxiously. "What news do you bring?" he demanded.

The five of them were all dressed in different coloured robes; each with a different insignia embroidered on them, indicating that mage's rank.

The one who spoke to Constantine was an ancient looking man, dressed in a silver-coloured robe with the crest of a dragon and the moon that was sewn in gold thread on his chest. He was apparently the leader of this group.

The old mage smiled. "Maol Chalvim, son of Kenneth II, has been captured, My King," he announced.

Constantine laughed. "Excellent!" he said. "It seems your spells have worked out quite well indeed, old mage."

"You're too kind, Your Majesty," the sorcerer replied, though he did so with an edge to his voice, but Constantine was too enthralled in the fact that his enemy had been captured that he didn't notice.

"Where is he?" Constantine asked.

"Right outside," the old wizard replied. "We figured you would want to see him as soon as possible, so we had him brought here with us."

"Perfect," Constantine clapped his hands together. "Guards, haul the ex-prince in here!"

The sounds of a struggle were heard, as the guards entered the room with the prisoner in-between them, holding his arms securely.

Constantine smiled none too kindly at the son of his predecessor, as he was kicked behind the knee, forcing him to kneel at the floor. "Greetings, _My Prince_," he said sarcastically.

Kenneth's heir glared at him with murder in his eyes. "You blackguard!" Maol Chalvim swore. "How did you and your men find and get into my camp unseen?"

Constantine chuckled. "I wish I could take the credit," he said honestly, as he pointed to the five robed men in his presence. "These mages here were kind enough to offer me their services in ending your little rebellion against my rule. One of their many talents is the gift of second sight. With it, they were able to locate your army's camp and reveal its location to my men. Then, under a cover of darkness and fog that was also conjured up by these mages, my men were able to sneak in undetected. By the time your soldiers even realised they were there, the battle was already over."

Maol Chalvim hissed. "_Your_ rule? King Kenneth was my father! If the throne belongs to anyone, it belongs to _me_! Not a murdering page!"

Constantine struck out with his boot, kicking Maol Chalvim under the chin. "Know your place, _peasant_," he told the former prince, anger in his eyes. "You forget that Kenneth stole the throne from my father, the true King of Scotland. I am merely taking back what is rightfully mine."

"Your father was a vicious and bloodthirsty tyrant," Maol Chalvim countered. "And he got the throne from murdering my uncle King Dubh if you recall! He got what came to him, and it wasn't as though my father were alone in playing his downfall. Nearly the whole of Scotland was behind him."

Constantine thinned his eyes at him. "Watch your tongue, Maol Chalvim! You've survived this long only because it suits me… and because I have a _very_ special fate in store for you."

The son of Kenneth looked up at him with defiance. "No matter what you do to me, my cause will live on, Constantine. The people of Scotland will never put up with a tyrant like you on their throne. Like your father before you, they will rally together and bring your reign to an end!"

"We'll see," his enemy replied, his eyes like ice. "In the meantime… Mages, if you would be so kind?"

"Our pleasure," the eldest sorcerer complied, smiling darkly at the former prince kneeling on the floor.

Maol Chalvim didn't know what they were planning to do with him, but as a prince, he was sworn to face whatever fate his enemies threw at him with courage, pride and honour. He held his chin up high, as the five sorcerers gathered around him.

"But first, one more thing," a gold-robed mage said, and retrieved from beneath his robe a long dagger.

The Prince hissed, as the sorcerer slit a small vein across his arm, drawing from it a trail of blood down his arm.

"What are you doing?" Constantine enquired curiously.

"Patience, My King," the silver-coloured mage told him, as he took a small bottle, gathering the blood within it until it was full. "Now… we can truly begin."

The five of them raised their arms around the Prince.

"Morrigan, Queen of phantoms, Goddess of transformations, hear our summons," the mages started chanting in ancient Gaelic. "Let loose thy tyranny, unleash thy power. Grant us this, thy magic to command, in the need of this hour!"

"Urgh!" Maol Chalvim cried out, as he felt his whole body go stiff.

As he looked down on himself, he saw what he at first thought was some kind of strange rash growing upon him. But as he observed, he soon same to realise that this was _no_ rash.

It started out at the base of his feet, like a grey shadow that quickly swarmed up past his ankles, covering both his feet followed by his legs. And once the grey shadow had moved past whatever it had enveloped, Maol Chalvim no longer had any feeling within them.

"AARGH!" he yelled, as the shadow quickly spread throughout his entire body until only his head was left untouched.

"And have no fear, my valiant cousin," Constantine smiled at him, as all of Maol Chalvim's flesh disappeared. "You will be put in a place of the highest honour… at the side of my throne to rest my arm upon!"

"AAA…!" the Prince of Scotland's cries were cut short, as the greyness that had now completely covered his whole body, painting over what remained of his head. Then… where once there had been a mortal man of flesh, there now stood a stone-statue with a twisted expression of horror forever etched on its face.

"Very nice work," Constantine said approvedly. "My many thanks to you, great mages. You have fulfilled your part of the bargain quite thoroughly."

The soldiers who had brought Maol Chalvim in all looked aghast at what had just happened, but kept silent, not wishing to anger their lord.

The mages simply bowed. "As we expect you to fulfil yours, King Constantine," they said simultaneously.

Constantine looked a little apprehensive, but he nodded all the same, knowing better than to anger these particular sorcerers. He didn't know who they were, but he knew enough to know their power was great. Any man would be a fool among fools to anger them.

"Of course," he replied. "Just tell me a few things… The Lady Finella, where is she?"

"We tracked her to the camp of Maol Chalvim, but beyond that we do not know. We can only assume she must have fled when your army attacked."

"Ah," Constantine scoffed. "No matter. She is only a woman, now alone in the world. What harm could she do?"

The silver-clad sorcerer nodded.

"But Maol Chalvim's wife and heir," Constantine then added. "What of them? Could they pose a threat to my rule?"

The elder mage shook his head. "Maol Chalvim must have sent them away to some place where they would be safe, most likely into England. However, they will be no more a threat to you than the bugs that crawl this land. Maol Chalvim had no sons, only a daughter, the Princess Bethoc. And even if she were old enough, no self-respecting army of men would ever follow a woman into battle."

Constantine laughed. "Perfect! Now to the other matter at hand… Your request for this… _book_ that you need. Where lies it?"

"The 'Grimorum Arcanorum' lies in the undeserving hands of a young Magus we have heard of to the coast. The castle is called Wyvern… "

Constantine stopped them there. "I have heard of this place," he said. "The former King Kenneth's niece and Maol Chalvim's cousin resides there. The place is absolutely swarming with Gargoyles! It's neither a fitting place for Kings or rats."

The ancient-looking wizard stared hard at him. "You _will_ take us to this place," he stated.

Constantine paused for a moment. "I will honour the agreement between us," he said. "But getting there will take some time. It is over a month's travel, even in the best of conditions. And lest not forget that it is still winter. The weather will be harsh…"

"We do not know or care how you will get us there, _King Constantine_!" the elder one barked at him. "But you _will_ get us there, understand?"

Constantine felt a surge of rage within him, but fought it. "Of course," he promised.

"It would be in your best interests to get there as soon as possible," a younger mage in blue robes added.

The new King of Scotland gave him a hard look of his own.

"What my young brother here means," the silver-clad one interjected. "Is that the key to securing your right to the throne once and for all also lies within Wyvern."

Constantine stared at him. "Explain?"

"The Princess who lives there, she is related to the former King by blood?"

"Yes?"

"And she is unmarried?"

"As far as I know," Constantine frowned. He was actually a little curious about the kingdom Wyvern, as he remembered once years ago when the King had been most secretive about it. Apparently he had received a letter from his brother, the now deceased Prince Malcolm of Wyvern, with some distressing news of some sort. He hadn't discussed it with anyone, save his own kin. Even today, it was still a mystery.

Constantine was beginning to regret having the mages turn Maol Chalvim into stone before getting him to divulge that secret to him.

"Then this is ideal!" the high sorcerer said confidently. "You take us to Wyvern, as part of the original agreement, and then once we get there and you take the castle as yours, we will have the Grimorum, and you can take the Princess… What is her name?"

"Katherine," Constantine answered, his eyes lighting up as he understood…

"With Princess Katherine, a woman of Kenneth's own blood, as your bride," the elder explained. "Someone with whom to bear an heir with. No one could possibly deny your right to the throne ever again."

"For now," a brown robed mage noted. "There will be many peasants who will deny your right, and no doubt many will attempt a rebellion. Kenneth was, after all, a much beloved ruler of the people, so not many will accept you. But with one of his family by your side, none will dare."

Constantine nodded. "You have convinced me, Great mages. We will start out for Wyvern immediately. Guards! Make ready the horses and provisions for the journey!"

"Yes, Your Majesty," both the guards responded, saluting him and running out of the room, eager to be out.

"How soon can we expect to be there?" the blue-clad sorcerer asked.

"Well, like I said," Constantine shrugged. "We are still in the middle of winter, so the weather is harsh. And the journey is over a month long, even in the best of conditions. It may take as close to two months if we're lucky."

"Then you had better get started then, hadn't you?" the ancient one told him, as if in a matter of fact.

Constantine nodded; bowing respectfully, though the gesture was forced by the look of it, and left the room.

"Is he gone?" the head wizard then asked.

The brown-robed wizard made a quick check around the door. "Yes," he said, as he closed the door behind him, locking it so that they could talk in private.

He looked back at his superior. "Do we really need this fool? He is really quite insufferable most of the time."

"For the time being, unfortunately, yes," the High Mage said, sighing. "All the auguries point to Constantine being our tool for gaining the Grimorum."

He smiled broadly, as he spoke more.

"But do not despair, brothers… The Grimorum has the power of ages within it, used by the greatest magicians of all time. From the Mage of ancient Rome to Merlin of Camelot." His eyes seemingly lit up as he focused on things only he could see. "And soon, very soon, its power will be ours!"

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern; Same Time:**

Katherine turned over the next egg in the nest, which made it the fifth egg so far this night. The other Rookery Keepers were busy with their own eggs for the night.

She had now been an unofficial Keeper for about a month, and thankfully the other Keepers had finally ceased in their constant scrutiny and displeasure at seeing her within the clan's Rookery.

It was actually not all that bad being in the Rookery, now that she had had time to get used to it. At least it didn't require any back-breaking labour like she had gone through when walking the beasts, it was quiet and peaceful, and beyond the spying eyes of the gossiping maidens up in the castle.

If only there was something she could do about the smell though, as the scent of rotten eggs and moss was forever in her hair and clothes now.

She finished turning the egg over, preparing to put it back down.

[CRACK!]

When Katherine heard the crackling sound, she felt her heart freeze and her breath get caught in her throat… Had she broken the egg?

If she had done, then her days were numbered when the other Keepers found out.

"What was that?" the elder female, with the dirty grey hair and skin colour, demanded.

"I didn't do anything!" Katherine insisted. "I was just turning it over and… "

"Be silent!" the female ordered her. That was when Katherine suddenly realised that she wasn't talking to her specifically.

The rest of the keepers within the Rookery fell silent, none of them uttering a word or even daring to breathe.

[CCCRACK!]

The same crackling sound came as before, but this time it was followed immediately by another, and then another and another… until the whole cavern was filled with the sound.

Suddenly, the egg that Katherine was holding within her arms wobbled, startling the Princess so much that she nearly dropped it.

Fortunately, the Keepers were busy with… _other things_, to take notice of the lone Human within their midst.

Katherine swallowed, as multiple crack-lines started appearing all around and across the shell of the egg.

"Ohhh lord no," she breathed.

Just then, a tiny fist punched its way out through the shell, startling Katherine yet again.

The Princess wanted to put the egg down immediately, or give it to someone else to hold, but she had no time…

Once the fist had punched its way through, the rest of the egg lost its structure and crumbled away, leaving behind… a dark grey-skinned baby Gargoyle.

The infant sniffed at its surroundings, more precisely at her, probably wondering what she was, as it lay in her arms.

Katherine could only stand there in shock, as she held the little squirming Hatchling.

"Uhhh, hello?" she asked no one in particular. "Could someone… please… _help_?"

The Keepers however were all too busy to notice her, as they began taking care of the newly hatched Gargoyles, and awaiting the ones that were even now still coming out of their shells.

Katherine didn't know what to do. Taking care of some oversized eggs was one thing, but how was she supposed to know how to take care of a baby Gargoyle?

The infant made tiny squawk-like noises, as it fussed about in her arms, wanting to explore. Something that Katherine wouldn't have minded it doing, as long as it meant leaving her alone, but she doubted that the others would care for it.

Awkwardly, she grimaced as she held him close to her chest, remembering what her old nursemaid used to do for her when she was little. She tried humming to it, but all that seemed to do was make it fussier.

Katherine looked around again, but the Keepers were all still too busy to take notice of her. They had barely gotten through even half of the new Hatchlings, and the rest still weren't fully hatched yet.

As she watched them though, she noticed that a lot of them were apparently … _purring_ to them?

Katherine blinked. It was odd, but then again they were Gargoyles so maybe purring was like humming to them?

She sighed in frustration, feeling ridiculous, but was willing to try anything to get the little monster to stop fidgeting. It had only just been hatched and it was already in the fighting mood. She could tell this one was definitely going to be a warrior.

Once again she held the little Gargoyle to her chest, but instead of humming this time she tried purring… though from her it sounded more like she had a sore throat or something.

But despite her poor attempt at mimicking a Gargoyle's natural sounds, the infant almost immediately quietened down. It paused in its struggling, gazing up with its eyes full of curious wonder at the strange big thing that was holding it.

The baby Gargoyle was a male infant with dark grey skin, large fin-like ears similar to the fat one of the Trio's, a patch of blonde hair and two large horns that curved all the way back over its head.

Its wings were very small, but she supposed that was to be expected, as Gargoyles from what she knew didn't start gliding until they were about twelve to fourteen years old (six to seven in Gargoyle years).

As she looked closer, she noticed that it bore a close resemblance to the Clan-Second, who she remembered the Captain and Brother Edmund often referring to as Othello, though its colouring was darker and its horns longer. As she recalled, his mate had horns and fair hair, similar to this infants. She wondered if that made this their child?

"A healthy young thing," a voice commented from behind her.

Turning around, Katherine discovered a rookery mother who looked at her as much as at the young one.

"Yes," Katherine admitted, rocking the hatchling in her arms, which now looked at the rookery mother in awe.

"Give him to me," the Gargess ordered, though in a mild tone.

Being surprised that she actually felt reluctant to do so, the Human handed the surprised hatchling over to the rookery mother who purred at him to calm him down.

Behind the rookery mother, the Princess discovered that the rookery was rapidly filling with Gargoyles and beasts that walked in chattering silently amongst themselves, as they looked at the newest members of the clan, having been informed by one rookery keeper.

"Will his parents be here soon?" she asked.

"Most already are," the Gargess replied.

"I know," the Princess said, looking around. "What I mean is..."

"Yes, I know," the Gargess replied firmly without raising her voice, beginning to fondle the hatchling's stomach. "But this is not our way. Daughters and sons belong to the _whole_ clan, not just two of them. _That_ is the Gargoyle way."

Katherine wanted to ask more, but the firm look in the eyes of the Gargess made her stop, feeling suddenly tired when she realised that she had forgotten for a moment how... _different_ these beings were.

"You can go up and take free the rest of the night," the rookery mother told her, seeing the tiredness in her eyes, just to add with some sarcasm. "We have enough of the clan here to help take care of the hatchlings... even some for the other nights."

The Princess's initial feeling was a need to protest, but it stopped once she asked herself why exactly she would want to.

'Don't be stupid,' she told herself, as she went up the path leading out of the rookery. 'You don't care for them. They are beasts, they… they...'

Strangely enough, for once Katherine couldn't find a bad image of them in her mind, as all she could see in her mind were the innocent eyes of the hatchling that she had just taken care of.

0000000000

**Over One Month Later:**

"Hold still, you little bug," Katherine said, her voice stressed.

It seemed to be of no avail, as the hatchling in front of her, with the striking resemblance to the clan's Second, cooed happily while moving his tail back and forth, effectively preventing the Human from placing it within the cloth changing rag, as she held his two legs at the same time.

Suddenly, a tail with a small bush of white hair at its end appeared over the hatchlings face, distracting him long enough to let Katherine put the changing rag on him.

"Thank you," the Princess said gratefully.

"No problem," the Gargess replied with a smile. "You do this good... better than some others..."

She took a look at one of her rookery brothers, a beaked male with horns; one of which was malformed, and who right now was busy with cleaning another hatchling. Or rather he seemed busy with looking disgusted at the changing rag he had managed to get off, and at the same time overly desperate to finish the task.

"I have observed how my maiden servants handle their young," Katherine replied, not going in for the praise, even though it strangely felt good. "I noticed that they become more vivid each day... err, night."

They moved to the more central part of the rookery where its ground had been softened by some straw, which served as a playground, or rather a _lying_ ground for the hatchlings.

"Yes, they will probably learn to crawl soon," the Gargess added thoughtfully, as Katherine laid the hatchling on the ground near his siblings. "That always comes too soon as I may add."

"Ye may say that, daughter," a grey bearded elder with faded red skin commented with a slight laugh. "Ye and yuir rookery siblings were the worst I can remember."

Loud good-hearted laugher broke out, and even the two Gargbeasts sitting beside the Gargoyles joined in with happy barks.

Unfortunately, one of the hatchlings seemed to mind the laughter, or just the lack of attention paid to him even if just for a moment, and he began to cry, with his siblings quickly joining out of solidarity.

Their rookery parents were quick to act, as they picked them up and hugged them, the loudest one first, then the one who seemed to cry without much conviction. Even the beast-hounds helped out by licking the faces of some of the little ones.

From a little off the side, the Gargoyle with the malformed horn tried to do the same with the hatchling he had finally managed to fix the changing rag on. Though from the way he looked, one would think that he was the one who needed to be calmed down.

The excitement was quickly quelled however, for the little green female hatchling he was looking after, whose forehead showed first signs of a crest, wouldn't let herself be calmed, as the rookery father who held her hummed and moved.

"Let me try," Katherine offered, noticing that the crying of the little green hatchling with the brown hair threatened to upset her siblings once more.

The rookery father gave her a short look, but then handed his daughter over to Katherine who held her in such a way that she could look at her while beginning to sing.

"Rose and daisy, lily and pansy..." she sang, which strangely enough seemed to work, making the hatchling stop crying and begin to look at the Human in wonder.

"Well," the Gargess with the bush at the end of her tail added, as Katherine handed the hatchling back to its rookery father. "You _are_ good at this. Did your..." She paused, trying to remember what it was that Humans called their female sires. "… Did your _mother_ teach you that song?"

"My wet nurse," Katherine remembered, suddenly looking very thoughtful. "My mother died when I was born."

"Oh yes," the Gargess suddenly remembered, having forgotten. "I'm terribly sorry."

Katherine shrugged. "It was not your fault. She couldn't be there when I was growing up, but when I have children I will..."

She suddenly fell silent, as did everyone else with her in the cave, except for the hatchlings that were watching their elders and each other with delight. Everyone understood at that moment that this was a very private matter for Wyvern's Princess.

'I will never have children of my own, ' Katherine realised suddenly. 'Only if it is with Goliath, but even then the chances of that are...'

"You can go up now, child," the grey bearded elder said, as if he could read her thoughts. "The rest of the night is free."

0000000000

An hour later, from beyond the castle walls, across the plains of the fields and forest, a lone woman was desperately making her way towards the castle on horseback.

She was clothed in a simple pale-blue dress, one of the few garments that she had left, as she had had to flee her home shortly after Constantine had come to power.

Lady Finella gasped hoarsely, her throat feeling like it was on fire. She had rarely stopped to rest or even to quench her thirst throughout her entire journey. Her body was now all skin and bones from weeks of lack of proper nourishment, her dress was practically in rags, and her eyes were dark and swollen with bags under them.

She had to keep biting her lower lip to keep herself from passing out right there and then on her horse, as it charged toward the castle gates.

After Constantine had killed King Kenneth and quickly ascended the throne, it hadn't taken Finella long to figure out that he had no intention of keeping his promise to wed her. In fact, from the moment when he had been crowned King, she had feared for her very life.

It was no secret that Constantine had murdered the King; as everyone knew that, but now that he was King, Constantine no longer had any use for her. He had used her merely so that he could get King Kenneth alone to slay him, which was all. He had never loved her.

Finella had had no time to weep for her lost love, though. Fearing for her life, she had fled the castle. She had hoped to reach the frontier and be safe in England from Constantine's forces, but she had never made it that far.

Kenneth's son, Prince Maol Chalvim, had been in hiding from the false King, along with a small army of his most loyal Scotsmen. Constantine had had his soldiers scour the entire countryside to try and find him, but instead they found her.

Fortunately, Maol Chalvim's men had been nearby and were able to rescue her from them. Once Constantine's men were dealt with, they had brought her before the Prince, and filled with guilt she had confessed her unwitting part in his father's murder and begged for his forgiveness.

Maol Chalvim had been angry to say the least, but he knew firsthand how devious and full of trickery Constantine was, and he knew her well enough to know that she would not have willingly played any part in such a black-hearted deed.

He had offered to help her escape Scotland by crossing her over the frontier into England, but she refused.

The Prince had partly freed her of her guilt, and in her mind she owed him a debt because of that. But more so because, since the Prince had no contempt for her, she had been given the chance to help bring Constantine to justice, and at the same time, get her revenge against him. So she had decided to stay and help with Maol Chalvim's rebellion in any way she could.

Alas, the rebellion had lasted not much longer than a month. No one knew where they had come from, but a group of strange sorcerers had appeared out of nowhere to offer their services to Constantine, and no one had been more amazed than Maol Chalvim when he had actually accepted their help, as Constantine had always shown an intense dislike for the mystic arts. Then again, his own true love had always been power, and having those sorcerers around had certainly gained him strength.

With the mages' help, Constantine had all but crushed the rebellion in as short a time as it took to plough a field. And the night when his army had attacked their camp, Maol Chalvim had given her a horse, ordering her to ride forth to Castle Wyvern where his cousin, Princess Katherine, resided, to warn her of the impending danger to her kingdom.

The castle was over a month's journey away, but Finella knew she had no choice. The rebellion was now gone, and only the Princess's kingdom was still free from Constantine's rule… for now.

So she had spent over a month now riding horseback towards the ocean where Castle Wyvern was located. She had ridden her horse hard, rarely stopping, not even to relieve herself, and now finally it seemed her journey was at an end.

Finella reached the castle-gates, and tried to call out to the guard, but was unable to do so because of her raw throat.

"_Who goes there_?" a man's voice yelled down to her.

Seeing as Finella could not answer him, all she could was look up and try to speak, her voice choking as she did. Finally, after over a month of intense riding and sheer exhaustion, her body could take no more… and she fell off her horse, unconscious.

0000000000

Katherine stood on one of the wall-walks, staring out on the black ocean. Part of her wanted to sleep, yet her thoughts and of course her biorhythm that had switched over the last few months to a life centred to the night, wouldn't allow this.

Her body's sleep-pattern seemed to be not the only thing that had changed.

"The sea is calm tonight," a deep voice noticed from behind her.

"I'm always surprised how different the sea looks at night," the Princess said, not turning around, despite being once again surprised at how calm the Gargoyles could be. "It's almost vivid."

There were some seconds of silence.

"But for you it is natural, isn't it?" she said.

"Yes," the voice replied.

More seconds of silence passed.

"I heard you did well at the rookery tonight," Goliath asked.

Katherine remained silent for a moment.

"I won't be able to have children," she noted, irritated. "I knew this the night we were married, but tonight, I have finally accepted it."

She waited a second longer to add something else.

"And neither can you," she added. "If I'm right about you and your kind. You have never produced an egg with any of your clan's females, and there is very little doubt that you and I will ever be able to conceive an heir together."

"You are, but this is not the way of my kind," Goliath said with a sigh, deciding it wasn't the time to tell her that some unmated Gargoyles mated simply for when the clan needed hatchlings. "But I have children, just..."

"... Just not of your flesh and blood," the Princess said, turning around and facing him, making Goliath realise that her eyes were slightly moist with tears. "But for my kind, those are our ways. When we have children, then that means that there will be something still left of us that will continue to live on long after we have departed." Katherine looked back on the sea, sniffing slightly, as she rubbed her eyes.

"I always imagined," she continued, "that one day I would have children of my own who I would give the kind of childhood that I never had with my own mother. And they would carry on my family's traditions… To rule this castle as I had done, and my father before me… to be my… _my_ _legacy_."

She then looked down at the rocks on the beach. "But it's never going to happen, is it? There has never been any knowledge of a Human and Gargoyle, such as we, bearing children together, and it's doubtful there ever will be."

Goliath remained silent while looking at her, finding this harder than anything he had ever done before.

Before one of them could say anything more, a guard appeared, running down the wall-walk to them.

"My lord... Umm, Princess..." he stopped under the eyes of the Human and the Gargoyle, still not knowing whom to address as the rightful ruler, realising that he must have interrupted something between them. "A woman has just come to the gate. She says she is of King Kenneth's court and has news for the ruler of this castle... She looks as though she has been hurt."

Goliath gave Katherine a look, seeing in her eyes that she had no intention to discuss the topic further now.

"We will come," he informed the young guard.

0000000000

The young woman lay on the small bed within one of the castle's guestrooms, the Magus checking her symptoms.

Finella's eyes fluttered open in a daze of half-consciousness. She had awakened just briefly to tell the guards, who found her, where she came from, but was finding it hard to stay awake.

"Your body has gone through a most strenuous time, my lady," the Magus said, as he bathed her forehead with a damp cloth. "You will need many weeks rest before you can even _attempt_ to walk again."

"No…" Finella moaned, her eyes forcing themselves open. "No… time… Must… speak… with… the Princess…"

"She will be here soon," the Magus assured her, as he poured some herbal medicine into a cup and held it to her lips.

No sooner had he said that, the door flung open, and the castle's two respective rulers entered, first Goliath and then Katherine…

"How fair's our guest?" Goliath asked.

The Magus sighed. "I am giving her some medicine that should help speed her recovery, but she will need at least several weeks of rest before she is even half well again. The state she is in, it is a miracle she is not dead. She looks as though she has not eaten properly in weeks."

"When she is awake, have the kitchen bring up all the food she can digest," Katherine ordered.

"No… wait… " Finella's voice whispered.

Goliath came slowly forward, leaning down to speak to her. "I am Goliath, Prince and regent of this castle. This is my wife, the Princess Katherine. Who are you and what do you wish here?"

Finella gasped, though it was not in shock at seeing the large Gargoyle before her. In the state she was in, it was doubtful she could even see the giant beast clearly before her.

"I am… Finella…" she breathed. "… Once of… King Kenneth's court."

"The King?" Katherine said, coming forward. "Did my uncle send you here?"

Finella carefully shook her head. "Nay… The King… is no more."

Katherine gasped, and hers was one definitely of shock as she did so. "My uncle…? Dear God, say it is not so!"

Finella wheezed and gasped. "I only … wish it were…" She paused, as the Magus poured a little more of his medicine into her mouth, moisturising her throat. "The King was murdered… by Lord Constantine… more than two and a half months ago."

"Two months?" Katherine exclaimed. "Why am I only hearing of this just now?"

"Prince Maol Chalvim issued a rebellion against Constantine…" Finella continued. "The war had not been going well… Many people have been unable to… escape."

"We are rather isolated out here, Princess," the Magus suggested. "If the war is as bad as she makes it out to be, there would have been no chance for us to learn about it till now if no one came to inform us."

"What of my cousin, Maol Chalvim?" Katherine suddenly urged. "How is my cousin?"

Finella, as well as looking pained and exhausted, now also looked grieved. "Your cousin, the Prince, fought valiantly, but… Constantine had help."

Katherine face fell. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know… what happened to him…" Finella admitted. "But Constantine had some help… from a group of mages who came to him, offering their assistance… With their magic, they were able to locate our camp and… _end_ the rebellion."

"My cousin?" Katherine repeated, looking fearful. "What happened to him?"

Finella shook her head. "I don't know… When Constantine's forces attacked us, the Prince sent me away to come here… to warn you of Constantine."

Katherine put her hand to her mouth, stifling back a gasp and a tear. The Magus was inclined to go over and attempt to comfort her, but someone had already done so…

Goliath rested his huge hand gently upon her shoulder, looking at her with his large dark eyes full of sympathy. "If your cousin still lives," he vowed. "Then we _will_ find him and rescue him. I give you my oath."

Katherine sniffed, and nodded her thanks to him.

The Magus felt a brief surge of jealousy run through him, but suppressed it, knowing that now was not the time to let the green-eyed monster overtake him.

"Do you know if Constantine's army is on their way here?" Goliath then asked her.

Finella just shook her head again. "I fled as soon as they attacked the Prince's camp. As far as I know, they might be right behind me."

Goliath frowned. "I'll have some of my warriors glide out to scout for any sign of them. We'll have two of my clan on watch-duty at night, and two of your guards during the day. Have them set out near the hills. The view from there will give them an advantage."

"I concur," Katherine agreed.

"What else can you tell us?" Goliath questioned Finella. "What about these mages that Constantine has serving him? Are they _that_ loyal to him?"

"I don't know, but…" Finella frowned.

"What?"

"I don't know if this is important, but…" Finella wheezed, feeling dizzy again. "But it was always… _peculiar_ to us that Constantine would ally himself with sorcerers… For he has never shown… any respect for those skilled in the mystic arts… It is a well known fact about that, yet… these mages came forth to offer their services, and as far as anyone knows… they have yet to benefit anything from it."

"Anything… until now," the Magus added out loud.

"What are you saying, Magus?" Katherine asked her closest friend.

"The only thing worth taking sides for them is here," the white-haired man replied. "A source of nearly limitless magical power..."

"The Grimorum!" Goliath and Katherine both stated simultaneously.

"Exactly," the Magus said worriedly. "The power in its pages is legendary. Sorcerers from every era on nearly every continent have strived to steal it and make its power their own. To be honest, I have been expecting someone or another to attempt stealing it someday. The only reason I can fathom why they have not done so already, is most likely because they fear me and its power too much."

At their strange looks, he added. "No matter who these mages are, or how powerful they may be… As long as someone has the Grimorum with them at all times, then even an apprentice sorcerer could defeat these so-called mages easily enough."

"What can you tell us about these mages?" Goliath asked Finella, but by then she was already unconscious.

"She needs rest, Goli… My Liege," Magus corrected himself, still finding it hard to address the Gargoyle as such. "Her body is almost completely worn out."

"Very well," Goliath agreed. "Inform me immediately when she is well enough to talk again. We need to know everything she knows about Constantine and these mages of his."

The Magus nodded.

"In the meantime, I will have two of my warriors despatched to the hills where they can keep watch. Katherine, summon the Captain and have him pick out his two best men to watch during the day."

Katherine agreed, and left to go find him.

"Magus," Goliath then turned to the castle's sorcerer. "Once you are finished tending to our guest, I want you to go down to your room and search through the Grimorum for every spell, charm, ritual and enchantment that you think might aid us in the coming battle. Fighting against ruffian Vikings is one thing, but we are talking about possibly going against the whole army of Scotland! We would not last long with those sorts of odds against us. If Constantine's men were to fail, he would just send out for more, and we would run out of supplies long before then."

The Magus nodded. "As you command."

0000000000

**Three Days Later:**

From beyond the few hills that surrounded the kingdom of Wyvern, anyone who was close by would have thought that thunder was approaching… only to be thrown into shock when they saw the real cause. For the thunder was the vibrations made by that of what looked like at least a hundred Scottish soldiers, as they marched their way across country.

At the head of the army rode the new self-appointed King of Scotland, Constantine III, with his five personal mages riding beside him.

"What can you tell us about Wyvern and its defences?" the Head of the mages demanded from Constantine.

The now apparent King of Scotland gave him a side-glance. A huge part of him would like nothing more than to take his sword and ram it down this mage's throat, but he knew to attempt such a thing would be unwise… especially against a mage.

"I can not say," Constantine admitted. "As I told you, I have never been here before. I only know what I know from what the people in Kenneth's Court have told me. I know that they have Gargoyles nesting there, and that their castle is located at the edge of the cliffs, which should count in our favour. With their castle being so cut off, they would not have long before their reserves ran out."

The Head Mage snorted. "Sounds about right, but what good is that should the Gargoyles slaughter us all?"

Constantine gripped his sword-handle. "They will not get the chance."

"Have you ever even faced a Gargoyle before, _My Lord_," the blue-clad mage almost sneered. "No matter what their size, Gargoyles are vicious warriors to the extreme. Very few men have ever fought one and survived."

"We have my near whole army at my command," Constantine sneered back. "What more do you want?"

"Beware your pride, My King," the Head Mage warned him. "My brother makes no mistake in a Gargoyle's capabilities. They are most fearsome creatures."

"Perhaps," Constantine shrugged. "Either way, we will find out tomorrow when we reach Wyvern!"

0000000000

**Next Night; Beyond Castle Wyvern:**

The hours of the long night were finally drawing to an end, as the stars were slowly fading, as the horizon turned from black to grey and then to gold. Dawn would be with them in just over another hour.

"The soldiers are finally here," one of the two Gargoyles on watch-duty said, the one with the malformed horn, pointing to a couple of Wyvern's guards approaching on horseback. The two Gargoyles had spent most of the entire night resting on the branches of several trees, keeping their eyes peeled for the supposedly approaching army that Goliath had warned them all about.

"Bout time, too," the other one grumbled. He was a large rust-red coloured Gargoyle with two exceedingly long horns coming right out the front of his forehead. "Any longer and we'd be spending the day here. And my tail is killing me!"

The one with the malformed horn, who was of course Thersities, snorted. "How do you think I feel? _I_ didn't even want to come!"

His rookery brother sneered. "That is hardly new knowledge to us, my brother. You _never_ want to come work."

Thersities was about say something further on that, when something else caught his eye.

"Err, brother?" he said unsurely. "Maybe it's just the long hours of the night talking, but… Since when does the ground move?"

"What are you talking about, you batty… "He stopped, as he looked to where Thersities was staring at. "By the Dragon…"

"What is it?"

"Trouble," he replied, and stretched out his wings. "Come!"

The two of them spread out their wings and glided down to where the two soldiers were approaching.

"Save yourselves the trouble, friends!" the red one shouted down to them. "We've just seen them! Constantine's forces are on their way! Head back towards the castle if you want to save your hides!"

The men needed no further encouraging on that point and twisted their horse's reigns to the side, galloping them back to Wyvern as fast as their horse's hooves would allow them.

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern; An Hour Later:**

From the courtyard of Castle Wyvern, there were all sorts of shouts and panicked screams coming from all around.

"How far are they?" Goliath demanded from the two Gargoyles he had sent to watch out for Constantine's army.

"Not far, Goliath," Thersities told him. "Barely a few hours away."

"Captain!" Goliath ordered. "Make sure everyone's in the castle and then seal it. No one is to enter or leave."

The Captain nodded.

"My clan and I must rest soon," Goliath frowned, as he saw the remnants of the night fading fast. "Brother, have our clan come down here into the courtyard. We will rest here for the day, in case Constantine decides to attack. Have the Hatchlings down in the Rookery where it is safest. I'd rather us not being in a direct path of their arrows and such when we awaken."

Thersities nodded and did as he was told, running on all fours to the nearest staircase up to the battlements.

"Constantine most likely won't attack until later," the Captain noted. "At least not until his men have rested from their long journey. Sleepy soldiers make lousy warriors, after all."

"Maybe, but he knows about my kind," Goliath added. "He knows that if he were to breach the castle before nightfall, he could rid this castle of some of its most needed warriors."

"They won't get the chance to," the Captain vowed to his leader in a short breath. "You can be certain of that, my friend."

Goliath gave a small smile, as gratitude, but still kept most of his stoic serious look. "The second that night falls, have the Magus meet me. Tell him I want that spell ready and prepared the moment we awaken."

"Spell?"

Goliath gave a bigger smile, then. "A small surprise for our would-be guests, my Captain. You will see."

The Captain looked at him oddly, but just shrugged, accepting his word for it.

A few moments later, the rest of Goliath's clan all glided down to the courtyard. And as Goliath prepared to take his morning stance, he noticed, with some rather large surprise, the Princess at the door to the Rookery?

He watched her as she stood at the door, hurrying the Hatchlings in, and making occasional glances down the small stairwell into the cavern below the castle, as though looking for someone… or _checking_ on someone.

The sun then rose, freezing a look of surprise and utter wonder on the clan-leader's face for the whole day.

0000000000

**Two Hours Later; Beyond The Forest:**

Constantine sat astride his horse, as he waited for his scouting party to return from their mission. Soon enough, the three men returned…

"What did you find out?" Constantine demanded.

"The castle is as we have heard, My Liege," one of the men reported. "It is sited right at the cliffs, so there is only the one way to gain entrance."

"What of its defences?" Constantine frowned. "And what of these Gargoyles I have heard so much about? Are they there?"

"We could not see any, Your Majesty," another one of the three explained. "But then again, it is daytime. If the legends be true then Gargoyles should be asleep in stone by now…"

"Of course they are true!" the sharp voice of the Head Mage snapped. "Honestly! Don't your men know anything? I know Gargoyles are not common in your part of the country, but they are not exactly unheard of!"

Constantine hissed below his breath.

The scouting party trembled a little at the sight of the mage. Although he appeared a timid old man, they knew he was anything but… especially after what he did to the former Prince Maol Chalvim.

"Go on with your report," Constantine told them.

"The castle-walls are high and well built, Sire," the third man added. "No doubt because of its night-time inhabitants. And this gives them a perfect tactical and defence advantage."

"Especially during the night," the sorcerer mused. "All the more reason why you should attack now and be done with it! During the day the Gargoyles are stone, so their castle will be more vulnerable. Come night, the castle will have at least as twice as many warriors, all of which will be vastly superior in strength and speed compared to you and your men!"

"My men have just spent months marching over countless miles of rugged land!" Constantine countered. "They are tired and weak. It would be just plain foolish to attack now when they are so weary. And even if they could… even without the so-called help of these demons, it sounds like this castle has more than enough strength to keep us at bay for the time being. It will take time for us to weaken its defences and cross its walls, even with the aid of an army."

"So you're just going to attack at night then?" the mage said, amazed at the stupidity of the man.

"Not if I have a choice, no!" Constantine glared at the old wizard who was really starting to grate his nerves. "But either way, my men are too tired to fight now. I need them rested and fully revitalised when we do attack. I will go to Wyvern myself and offer the Princess a choice… Either she comes with us peacefully and becomes my Queen, or we attack. With any luck, she will be as weak-willed as her uncle when considering the safety of her subjects."

"And suppose she doesn't? She could just send the Gargoyles to hunt us down!"

Constantine almost sneered at him. "As great a warriors as these Gargoyles may be, or as you make them out to be, it is doubtful they would stand much of a chance against _all_ of my men together."

"Gargoyles have the advantage of air, larger, stronger, and more agile," the mage told him. "And never forget that there is a whole clan of them behind those walls."

"Well then," Constantine said, looking at him hard. "I guess it's up to you then. If you want that precious book of yours so bad, then you and your friends had better find a way for me to get into that castle safely."

The Head Mage glared at him, but nodded. "Fortunately, my brothers and I prepared for such an eventuality. Go then, if you wish, and make your plea bargain with the Princess. If she refuses, we will be ready."

Constantine nodded his approval, and the mage went back into his tent.

"Must we put up with that old fool and his brethren much longer?" one of Constantine's advisers asked his King in frustration.

"Show some respect, Connor," Constantine said, seemingly rebuking him. "After all, without their aid we would never have tracked down and crushed Maol Chalvim's rebellion as quickly as we did. We do owe them a debt… or at least… until _after_ we have the Princess at my side."

Constantine gave a thin smile.

Meanwhile, the Head Mage and his followers were also having a small dispute.

"This is becoming intolerable!" the blue-robed one hissed.

"I agree," the brown one added. "It was bad enough having to come to him in the first place, but now…"

"Peace, brothers!" the silver-robed head of their order interjected. "I know you are as unhappy with this situation as I, but it cannot be helped. We needed the young imbecile's forces to come with us when we took the Grimorum. There was no way we could have succeeded without him."

"What are we to do now?" the brown-robed sorcerer asked.

"Never fear," his leader told him. "Remember, we planned for something such as this weeks ago. Do you still have the vial?"

The younger mage reached into his robe, pulling out a small vial that was filled with blood… the Prince's blood.

"As always," he replied.

"Good. I will go with Scotland's so-called King to the castle for these negotiations of his. Prepare the summoning spell while we are there. I have no doubt we will be needing it."

"One question, brother," the blue-robed sorcerer then asked. "Once we have the Grimorum, what are we to do about Constantine?"

The Head mage smiled. "I'm glad you asked that," he said. "One of the first spells we will cast, once we have the Grimorum, will be to bring out that insufferable fool's inner self, and turn him into what is undoubtedly his true form… a jackass!"

The four mages smiled lowly, but the blue-clad one looked thoughtful.

"But did you not give a sorcerer's oath that you would aid him?" he asked.

The ancient one merely shrugged. "When we first met Constantine, I swore to him that we would help him to become a full King, which we will do so… I never said, however, that he would be a King of _men_ now, did I?"

The younger wizard began smiling along with the rest of his brethren.

"When we have the Grimorum and its magic at our command…" their leader continued. "This so-called lord can look forward to a future… as king of the donkeys! Spending the rest of his life living amongst all the other jackasses of this country!"

The five mages laughed.

0000000000

**A Few Hours Later (Next Day); **

**Castle Wyvern:**

"I don't like this," one of the archers said to his comrade.

"Me neither," the other replied, checking if his helmet was sitting right for the third time in five minutes.

An hour ago, a large group of Constantine's army had moved away from their camp, beyond the forest, and come up to the gates of Castle Wyvern where they were even now waiting, quite possibly to be let in. But they would have a long wait before Princess Katherine would ever willingly relinquish her castle to the followers of her uncle's murderer, even if just for a visit.

Both of the archers were still feeling the impact of the large boulder that the Viking catapult had hurled at them all those months ago. They had both been standing at the battlements that night, along with the rest of their brother soldiers, to defend their home, and thus remembered how close they had come to dying that evening.

Now there was, once again, an army at the gate, one that was close to the same size as that of the previous wanna-be invaders, and this wasn't even the full army. And this time, nightfall was many hours away.

Needless to say, the two archers, and every other soldier in the castle, was feeling pretty anxious right about now.

"Be calm, lads," the Captain of The Guard told them, as he came up to the battlements to inspect his soldiers. "Don't be disheartened. The battle has not even begun yet, and we have many things that their army has not."

He was about to say something else to give them assurance, and gain some courage, when…

"There!" another archer exclaimed, pointing to the head of the army where three men were even now seceding from the main bulk of their armed forces. They rode up, side by side, toward the castle on horseback, and soon came to a halt at half the distance between the army and the castle. The one in the middle raised his voice to the guards on the battlements.

"I DEMAND TO SPEAK WITH PRINCESS KATHERINE!" the rider shouted.

"Bet you do," the Captain noted sarcastically. He had never met the arrogant-looking man before, but could guess who he was by the crown that lay upon his head, as could the person behind him.

"Here I am!" Katherine replied, loudly and clearly, stepping forward from behind the Captain, looking down from the battlements. "What demands the murderer of my uncle?"

Constantine remained silent for a moment, eyeing the Princess dangerously.

"As your _**rightful**_ King, I command you to surrender this castle to me!" he replied, ignoring her accusation. "For the sake of both your kingdom and mine, you will marry me and be my queen! And in return, I'll show mercy for your people for this act of treason!"

All Katherine could do was stare at the man below her, totally surprised by his arrogance. The Lady Finella had not been exaggerating when she had warned them about him.

"My cousin is the rightful King! You are nothing but an impostor!" she shouted angrily, only to add something else, while smiling slyly. "And besides… I am already wedded!"

Though he was too far for her to see, Constantine's eyes were bulging with shock and rage.

"WHAT? With _**WHOM**_?" Constantine demanded, but the Princess gave him no answer.

"How can this be?" Constantine hissed at the soldier beside him. "I was told Princess Katherine had no husband!"

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," the guard on his left pleaded. "But as you can see, this castle and its people are rather isolated here. For all we know, this marriage that she speaks of might have only occurred within the last moon. There was no way we could have foreseen this."

Constantine cursed lowly, and then added loudly… "Have your husband brought before me then! I wish to speak with the lord of this castle!"

"Goliath does not speak with cowards and filthy murderers!" Katherine shouted back at him. "He will not see you, save when your head is mounted on an iron spike!"

Constantine glared at her, enraged at her rebellious tongue.

"Very well then!" he yelled, his voice rising with freshly added spark. "We will see how well you will be able to defy me… when my army has ransacked your castle, along with every treacherous soul within it!"

With these words, he turned around and returned to his waiting army.

"Call for the rest of my forces at once!" he shouted at the nearest soldier. "Load the catapults, and prepare the battering ram! We will raze this castle and its inhabitants to the ground!"

"And risk your precious Princess getting killed in the process?" a voice calmly asked him from his right. "I thought she was worth more to you alive?"

Angrily, he turned to his right to see the leader of the mages standing there in his silver coloured robe, which was strange since Constantine thought that he had remained behind in the encampment. But then again, with a wizard, who knew if what anyone saw was the truth?

"So what do _you_ suggest?" he snapped, trying to mask the surprise in his voice with his anger.

"My brothers and I foresaw this possible turn of events, and have planned something to counter it with, _Your Majesty_," the mage explained. "But you must first stop your siege."

"And let these traitors get away with their defiance?" Constantine said furiously. "Never!"

The mage worked hard to keep a sigh from escaping his lips. As a Jackass, this man would probably become more intelligent than he was right now.

"You will have the castle _and_ the Princess before daybreak tomorrow," he promised the young fool. "Then you can kill everyone in the castle, including her husband. But for now, you must call your army back and wait at the edge of the forest."

"Oh, and I suppose she will simply come to us then," Constantine said sarcastically, forgetting his cautiousness for a moment.

"Yes," the mage replied with a dark smile. "She will."

Constantine looked oddly at the mage for a moment. He thought of asking the sorcerer what he meant by that, but knew better than to ask him and his kind anything. Instead he turned around, walking in front of the castle once again.

This went against his very nature, but if the mage had a plan then he knew better than to go against him.

"As a sign of my great mercy, I shall give you time to reconsider your decision!" he yelled to the surprised Katherine above. "You have until dawn tomorrow to comply with my commands. If you don't, then know that you have sealed the fates of both yourself… and _everyone_ around you!"

With these words, he turned around and left.

0000000000

**Later That Evening; Castle Wyvern:**

"And they just left?" Goliath asked again.

"Yes," Katherine replied. "This doesn't make any sense."

What she said was true, as from what they knew of Constantine, from the Lady Finella, it seemed very unlike him to offer time to anyone, let alone those he was at war with. If anything, the only reason why he would allow his enemies time would be for them to contemplate their fate before an execution or something. So why would he give them until sunrise to change their decision?

The Princess looked around to the Captain of The Guard, the Magus and Goliath's Second, who stood there beside him.

"Maybe his mages need the time to prepare their foul magic," the white-haired human guessed.

"Or they want to plunder the towns and farms first?" the Captain added, casting a look out on the plains and the forest behind. "There is little we can do now anyhow."

"_We_ can," Goliath replied, looking to his Second. "Gather the clan. We will set up spies to monitor their movements. If they are out to plunder, then we shall prevent it and protect the farmers."

The white-haired Gargoyle nodded and jumped onto the battlement, gliding away to gather the warriors needed.

"Magus, please search for spells and any way to counter the magic of the mages," Goliath ordered the human. "We must be prepared for anything."

The Magus nodded, giving Goliath and then the Princess a last look before leaving for his private chambers.

"Captain, we need to discuss a plan for when the siege commences," the Regent told the older human. "And if they attack tomorrow, then we must set up a good defence."

The Captain nodded, remembering very well how their day's defence had failed miserably against the Vikings. They had merely delayed them until the sun had gone down, when they knew the Gargoyles would be able to fight and defeat them.

"I'll go to the rookery now," the Princess stated in a moment of silence, feeling she had learned all she needed to know. "Inform me if you learn of anything new."

"I will," Goliath told his wife, watching her leave.

"It seems you are finally making some progress," the Captain noticed, somewhat happily despite the earnest situation.

Goliath just nodded, though with the hint of a smile on his usually stoic face. But that smile quickly faded, as he quickly began discussing battle tactics with his human ally.

It would not be long now before the kingdom of Wyvern fought its greatest battle.

0000000000

**Constantine's Encampment; **

**Same Time:**

"I trust you now have a good reason as to why I had to let Princess Katherine and her infested rumble of a castle go?" Constantine said, half-glaring at the Head mage who was standing within a circle, along with his fellow sorcerers, around a boiling cauldron. "Not to mention why I have had to wait all day for your so-called plan to take effect?"

After they had left Wyvern, Constantine and his men had all returned to their encampment along with the mages who had immediately returned to their own tent once they had arrived. They had spent the rest of the day, and the first part of the evening, there, not seeing anyone, not even Constantine.

Needless to say, Constantine had been as mad as hell about that. Even more so when he questioned them about it, but they refused to give him a straight answer, saying only that all would be revealed at sundown.

Well, sundown had come and gone, and still he had not received a satisfactory answer of why he had had to leave Wyvern and spare them for the day, but as God was his witness he would find out _now_.

"You will soon see," the leader of the sorcerers replied, and then looked to the blue-clad mage. "Brother, the blood?"

The younger mage reached into his robe, withdrawing it with the same small bottle that Constantine recalled seeing him with the day when they had cursed the fool Maol Chalvim. He also remembered what they had filled bottle with that day.

"Is that… Maol Chalvim's _blood_?" the present King of Scotland asked.

The sorcerer nodded. "We always anticipated that the Princess would not be so cooperative as to surrender her castle and go willingly with you. So… we took measures to ensure her defeat would be done swiftly and easily."

"And how do you plan on achieving that? And why have I been waiting all day, when it was you who warned me about those Gargoyle things in the first place?"

The Head Mage just smirked. "Watch and learn," he replied, as he took the bottle from his fellow user of magic, and uncorked it.

The rest of the wizards suddenly began to give a slow hum, in an eerie but rhythmical tune, while their leader held the bottle up in the air.

"Sanguis sanguinis, viscus visceris..." he recited. "Trans et ventos et mara et terras, dua vases misceant!" (Blood of the blood, flesh of the flesh… across the winds, sea and land, let the two vessels unite!)

With the final word spoken, he poured the blood of the former Scottish Prince into the cauldron.

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern:**

Princess Katherine made her way down the castle steps from the battlements, to the Rookery. She was quite surprised that she was finding herself actually looking forward to going there now, when there had been a time not too long ago when she had both dreaded and loathed the mere thought of going there.

She still found being around so many Gargoyles, even Hatchlings, a little disconcerting, but… she had to admit that once you managed to look past the large horns, oddly coloured skin, tiny fangs, claws and massive ears… that little baby Gargoyle with the crop of blonde hair was really quite _cute_.

She didn't know why, as she knew that except for Goliath, Gargoyles had no names, but for some reason… she thought the name 'Gabriel' suited the newly hatched Gargoyle very well. Its fair hair, wide innocent eyes, and feral attitude when they were trying to change his changing rag, made her think of the Archangel Gabriel.

She knew it wasn't Gargoyle tradition to take names, let alone name their young, but maybe they could make an exception just this once? After all, the Archangels were the guardians of Heaven were they not, like the Gargoyles were the guardians of this castle? It seemed an ideal name for the young one.

She would have to remember to talk it over with Goliath later, Katherine thought as she walked down the stone-steps to the courtyard. She had just reached the foot of the stairs when…

"Uhhh!" she gasped, as she doubled over as if in pain. It felt as though something had grabbed hold of both her body and mind.

It was like some kind of deep primal instinct had awakened within her, like the birds that flew south during winter, obeying the call of nature. And now, like those birds, Katherine too was obeying something, but it was not Mother Nature she was listening to.

She felt light-headed, as her mind refused to focus, but her feet were all too ready and willing to take over for her. It was as if they had gained minds of their own, like she was sleepwalking, as they walked forward toward their intended destination… and Katherine made no objection.

From across the courtyard, one of the milkmaids bowed before the Princess, as she walked toward her.

"Good evening, Your Highness," she said, as she greeted Wyvern's royalty… but Katherine made no reply.

She just walked right past the young servant, as though she had not even seen her, her eyes half-closed as if in a daze.

0000000000

**Constantine's Encampment:**

"It has begun," the brown-robed mage announced.

"She will be arriving soon," their leader said, smiling.

"What are you muttering about?" Constantine frowned. "_Who_ is coming?"

"Your future queen," the head sorcerer simply replied.

Constantine cocked an eyebrow at the mage's words. "And just why do you assume that?" he asked, seemingly amused. "Do you think that she is just going to walk right out of her castle and into my arms?"

"Maybe not your arms," the silver-robed man replied. "But as for coming here… most definitely."

Constantine looked at him as if he'd gone mad. "Are you insane?" he said, wondering if all the travelling had finally taken its toll on this old man's head. "What in all the world and beyond would be strong enough to convince her to leave her safe haven and come to her sworn enemy?"

"A sorcerer's will," the ancient looking sorcerer simply replied, never losing his smile.

Constantine frowned again, but seemed to look interested. "Explain," he said.

"The spell we just cast," the wizard explained, "is an ancient spell that my companions and I learnt years ago. It is a fairly simple and easily conjured enchantment, but in this case it is most effective for our needs."

"What do you mean?"

The High Wizard nodded at the now empty bottle in his fellow wizard's hand. "That vial, as you saw, once contained the blood of Scotland's former Prince, Maol Chalvim, cousin to Katherine of Wyvern. And as the old saying goes… _Nothing_ is stronger than family." He said, not losing his smile. "The spell we cast has fused Maol Chalvim's blood with magic, turning it into a sort of… what you might call a homing call? Anyone who is of the Prince's family, who share the same blood as he, will be instantly drawn to it."

Constantine's lit up with realisation. "So the Princess Katherine will…"

"The spell will enchant her mind," the mage confirmed. "She will be compelled to seek out this cauldron, now bubbling with her cousin's blood, wherever it may be, no matter what the cost."

Constantine laughed. "And she will do it willingly?"

"She will have no knowledge of what she is doing," the sorcerer explained. "Only when we have removed the spell will she be in her correct state of mind once again."

Constantine chuckled darkly. "Excellent," he said smugly. "Well then, if you will excuse me… I had better go make preparations for the arrival of my future queen then."

With that, he turned and left the mages' tent, not noticing their rolling eyes and the dark looks they were giving him.

The second he was out of the tent, he summoned some of his guards.

"Fetch some horses," he ordered. "We will be going back into the forest to watch over the castle. If what the mages say is true, _and it had better be for their sakes_, the Princess Katherine will be coming out tonight to embrace her destiny at long last!"

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern:**

Katherine walked toward the Great Hall. She didn't know what, but something was calling her, and no matter what, she knew she had to follow it to its point of origin.

She passed by a few guards and some servants, but not many, as most were preparing for the coming battle with Constantine. They passed by her, giving her a short bow of respect, but Katherine did not even heed them, and they were obviously too busy with battle preparations to notice the dazed look upon her face.

Katherine didn't know where she was going, or what she was trying to find, but she knew it was beyond the castle walls, thus she had to get out there.

Fortunately (or UN-fortunately, depending on how you viewed it), even though her mind was clouded, her memory was not. She remembered that when her family had built this fortress all those years ago, her father had built it with a few escape routes, should it ever be besieged with no hope of them defeating their enemies. One of them was a false-wall in the Great Hall that opened to a tunnel, leading just beyond the outer wall of the castle.

It was a secret tunnel that had been built specifically for the Royals to escape through, should the castle fall, because as long as even one member of the Royal family lived, then there was hope.

Katherine moved the stone above the throne, activating the secret passageway. And a few moments later, the wall at the back of the room slowly slid open, and Katherine walked through.

**To Be Continued… **


	4. Chapter 4

_**All the characters appearing in Gargoyles and Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles are copyright Buena Vista Television/The Walt Disney Company.  
No infringement of these copyrights is intended, and is not authorized by the copyright holder.  
All original characters are the property of Storyseeker and Hardwing.**_

_**This story was co-written with the great author Hardwing! Many thanks!**_

_**This fic saga is set in an alternate universe, in Wyvern's past, with characters from the Dark Ages Saga in TGS and some of Hardwing's own characters. It starts off right after the events shown in the show's episode 'Long Way To Morning' in 984 A.D. where the events in that chapter lead to a different conclusion for the clan. It is also set in the same timeline as the show in that era, with one small difference… and that's Goliath didn't get his name until just after 984 A.D.**_

_**Oh, and in case some people get offended at some of the sexist remarks in this saga… Please remember that it is set in the medieval ages.**_

_**Many thanks to Kimberly Towle for her suggestions, and to the author Aesop for all his proofreading…**_

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern:**

On the east side of the castle, the Magus was on his way to the battle-room to find Goliath and report his findings from the Grimorum.

He had gone through the magic book page by page, locating every protection rune and battle-spell he could find that would help defend Wyvern against the dark magic of Constantine's mages. So far, he had found a massive assortment of such charms that would help them, and was on his way now to show them to Goliath and Katherine.

He still found it a little difficult, after spending so many years treating Goliath as his enemy, to treat him as his sovereign now, but that was nothing compared to actually treating him as an equal, or worse… a friend.

Still, he knew that when it came to battle-tactics and protecting their home, there was none finer that the giant mountain of lavender muscle. And Goliath had proven, time and time again, that in his own special way he did care for the Princess and did not want to see her come to harm.

He just hoped he would find Katherine in there with him, as that would make it easier for him, for now.

He soon reached the battle-room, and sure enough found Goliath inside with the Captain and his Clan-Second… but no Katherine.

Resisting a sigh of disappointment, the Magus walked in with a bundle of pages that he had copied from the Grimorum; of the spells he thought would best suit their needs, under his arm.

"My Lord," the Magus said, this time without clenching his teeth, as he usually did when addressing the Gargoyle leader as such.

Goliath looked up at the robed sorcerer from the map that was laying on the table in front of him, showing the area surrounding the castle, the forest and beyond.

"You were successful in finding some spells to aid us?" he asked eagerly.

The Magus nodded. "The Grimorum has more than suitable resources for our needs," he told the Gargoyle King. "I have already found several protection spells that should keep all of Wyvern safe from any of the mage's powers."

Goliath nodded. "How soon can you begin implementing them?"

The Magus frowned. "That is the problem, I'm afraid. The spells I speak of are no easy task to perform. I will need at least a full day to complete even just one of the incantations."

Goliath growled in frustration. "Can you not speed up the process?"

The Magus hissed. "If I could, I would do so!"

"Easy, lad," the Captain hushed him. "He was only asking."

"My apologies, my Prince," Magus replied. "I am just… tired." 'More so than you can imagine,' he added with a thought.

"One of the first things you learn as a sorcerer is never to rush things," he explained. "It would be useless, or even _dangerous,_ to rush any of these spells. But I can at least provide some protection for our people by putting up some mental barriers around their minds. This will shield them from the mages' powers, should they attempt any such thing."

Goliath sighed. "Fine. Anything you can do will be most appreciated, Magus."

The former student of the Archmage nodded.

At that moment, the door opened, and in came one of the Gargoyle females whom the Magus recognised as the Clan-Second's mate. She was the deep orange-coloured Gargess with the unusually split wings, and fair hair.

"My Love," Othello said, as he headed toward her, embracing her in his arms and wings. "How fair the hatchlings?"

Desdemona shrugged. "As well as all newly hatched ones can be… completely oblivious to everything that's going on around them," she said, smiling. "It makes me envious of them sometimes. What I wouldn't do to make myself forget what's going on outside these walls of ours."

"Wouldn't we all," the Captain agreed, giving a small humourless smile.

Goliath shook his head. "Speaking of the hatchlings, how also fairs my _delicate_ wife?"

Desdemona looked at him curiously. "Last I saw of her, she was fine. But that was last night."

Goliath raised his eyeridges in alarm. "What do you mean? Wasn't she in the rookery with you and the others?"

0000000000

**Forests Outside Wyvern:**

Constantine and ten of his soldiers stood watch near the edge of the forest, where Castle Wyvern stood. He wanted to take no chances, so he had brought ten of his known fiercest warriors to help apprehend Katherine when she eventually turned up.

"How long would you have us wait here, Your Majesty?" one of the soldiers asked.

Constantine did not even spare him a glance. "As long as it takes," he simply replied. "The mages guarantee that the Princess will show up tonight here, and I fully intend to be here when she does."

Little did he know how right he was, for at that exact moment, not far from where Constantine and his soldiers were waiting, Katherine was at the castle, opening the secret passageway on the outer castle-wall, which would lead outside of Wyvern.

Katherine had never been down the tunnel before, but she had known where it was, as her father had shown it to her years ago when she was a child. No one else had used it either, apparently, considering all the dust and cobwebs she had passed through on her way there.

Once she was through, there was no turning back. Both of the passage-doors, the one on the outer wall and the one within the Great Hall, had been built specifically so that they could only be opened from on the inside, so that none of their enemies could get in.

Alas, the spell of the mages still held Katherine fast.

With her head still clouded, and no freewill of her own, she stepped through the outer door and closed it behind her. Whether she did this purely by instinct, as she was taught to do so from early childhood, or because deep down she wanted to ensure her people's safety by preventing any of Constantine's army gaining entry into Wyvern, was unclear.

Without considering any of this, she continued on her short journey and carried on walking, this time into the forest.

0000000000

Back in the castle, when it became clear to everyone that Katherine had never shown up in the Rookery, as she had intended, a frantic search had begun all over the stone fortress.

"Search everywhere!" Goliath ordered. "Leave no door unopened, no inch of this entire castle unexplored! Let no one rest until she is found!"

"Yes, Sire," one of the guards replied, saluting the Gargoyle King before rushing off to begin his search for the Princess.

As he left, Othello entered the Great Hall where they were gathered, but the look on his face as good as told everyone that he had no good news to report.

"No luck?" Goliath asked, though he already knew what the answer would be from him.

Othello shook his head, confirming Goliath's assumption. "Neither those of the clan nor any of the humans have seen her in the past half hour or so."

Goliath growled in frustration. Where could she have gone?

At first, he thought maybe this was all just some terrible joke of hers, to make him worry. But he soon dismissed that notion. Not only had Katherine softened a lot in the last couple of months, but not even the old Katherine would make so cruel a jest at such a dire time as now, with Constantine right at their doorstep.

But with that being the case, then where in the name of the Dragon was she?

A few moments later, the Captain hurried in…

"Captain?" Goliath said hopefully, but the shake of his friend's head soon shattered that.

"The men and your clan are scouring the castle now as we speak," the Captain said assuredly. "They'll find her soon enough."

Goliath gave a short smile, but it was forced. If the Princess could be found then she would have been so already. The one thing that was still confounded him was what could have happened to her?

The only logical explanation was that Constantine must have somehow got to her, but how could that be? Constantine was still beyond the walls of Wyvern, and there was no way in for him, so how?

The next thought worried him, but it seemed like the only possible explanation… _a spy_. A spy of Constantine right within their own walls must have helped the blackguard by kidnapping Katherine and bringing her to him.

But even so, there was still the question of how he could have been able to get her out? All the entrances and exits of Wyvern were still sealed, with no way in or out for anyone, and they were all watched over night and day.

"Goliath!" the voice of the Magus suddenly cried out.

The large warrior turned to see the white-headed sorcerer hurrying toward them from one of the side doors at the back of the Hall. His face seemed flushed, as though he had just run all the way to them from the other side of the country.

"I believe I know a way to find Katherine," he exclaimed. He was obviously feeling exceedingly worried by the Princess's fate, as he had seemingly forgotten to address both she and Goliath by their royal titles, but no one saw fit to remind him at that particular moment.

"How?" Goliath demanded.

"The Grimorum!" the Magus explained. "I remembered a spell within its pages that can help find someone who is lost. I have it here with me now." He showed them both the torn page from the ancient book.

Goliath realised that the young wizard must really be worried, as it was a known fact that the Magus treasured the Grimorum above all else, save Katherine, yet he had brought them the spell by tearing out the very page it was on instead of merely copying it like he always did.

The Castle-Regent however had no time to reflect on this, and ordered the Magus to proceed with his plan…

"Do whatever you must!"

The Magus did as ordered and read from the page… "Aradia, dea de perditissimus, do meus vester conspectus. Probo meus conperio ea perditissimus ut we! Aradia, Goddess of the Lost, give me your sight. Let me find she lost to us!"

The spell was cast, and the Magus felt his soul soar, as his eyes saw beyond the castle's four walls…

0000000000

**Forests Outside Wyvern:**

"Ah," Constantine smirked, as the branches of the trees pulled away, revealing Wyvern's Princess, as she stepped through them. "My future Queen doth arrive."

Katherine made no comment, as she just continued walking forward, her face a total blank.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that she was still under the mages' spell, and no doubt would remain so until she reached that dumb cauldron of theirs, so Constantine trotted his horse forward towards her.

"Come, My Queen," he said, smiling smugly, as he held out his hand down to her. "Your destiny awaits you. I will carry you for the rest of your journey."

Katherine did not look up or even blink her hazy eyes. She just stood where she was for a few moments before she slowly lifted her hand up to his.

_"Aradia, Goddess of the Lost, give me your sight. Let me find she lost to us!"_

The words were spoken beyond even a Gargoyle's range of hearing, yet Katherine heard the words as clearly as though someone was saying them right in her ear.

At first, all Katherine did was frown in confusion when she heard the words, but then… it was like someone had stabbed her with a pin on her arm, and her spirit once again came alive and awake.

0000000000

**Constantine's Encampment: **

The five mages stood around the boiling cauldron, as they waited to hear news from their would-be King of when his blushing bride finally arrived.

But fate, it seemed, had others plans in store…

The cauldron suddenly spluttered, as the elixir within it churned and spat.

"What in the name of Hades?" the Head Mage said, startled.

No sooner had he said this, the cauldron shuddered one last time and spat out the whole of its brew upon all the mages, practically drowning them in its filthy red mixture.

The mages shielded their faces from the boiling thick liquid, crying out as the ugly goop ruined their once proud robes, the leader of their order screaming in outrage.

"WHAT HAPPENED?"

0000000000

**Within The Forest: **

"Huh… wha…?" Katherine muttered, as she blinked her eyes in confusion. "Where… where am I?"

She looked around briefly, and did a double take when she realised where she was, and more importantly… whom she was with.

"Constantine!" she cried out in alarm.

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern: **

The Magus shuddered, as he felt the magic of the ancients go through him.

Using the power of the Goddess of the Lost, he searched through infinity for his lost Princess… and soon, he found her…

"Urgh!" the Magus cried out, losing his balance as he stepped back.

Goliath was quick on his feet, as he reached for the Princess's former advisor, steadying him. "What is it?" he asked.

"The Princess," the Magus breathed out, seemingly exhausted. The spell obviously must have taken a lot out of him. "She… she was under a spell!"

"What, you mean yours?" the Captain said in confusion.

"No!" the Magus said, as he sat down on one of the Hall-chairs, nursing his forehead. "It can only be those mages with Constantine. I felt the presence of another form of magic upon the Princess's mind when I located her…"

"You know where she is?" Goliath said urgently. "Where is she?"

"Outside," the Magus replied. "Right within the forest… with Constantine!"

Goliath snarled, his eyes flaring bright silver, as he spun around. "Brother, you're with me!" he ordered his Second. "I think it's high time we met this supposed new King of Scotland for ourselves! Captain, you remain here and watch over the castle!"

And with that, Goliath raced out of the Hall on all fours, with Othello running close behind him.

The Captain stayed behind with the Magus, checking to see is he was all right.

"Looks like that spell took a lot out of you," the Captain commented.

"Not the spell," the Magus told him. "At least, not completely… The spell I used allowed me to spiritually search for and locate Princess Katherine. When I found her, my spell and the spell that the mages must have used on her… _clashed_."

"Clashed?"

The Magus nodded. "The spell I used was from the Grimorum, and originated from Ancient Rome. Whatever spell the mages used, it obviously must have come from a different source. And as any half-knowledgeable sorcerer's apprentice knows, it's highly unwise to mix magics… dangerous even."

He looked alarmed. "Katherine," he said. "I've got to go! Goliath will need my help in… "

"Goliath and his clan can handle anything," the Captain assured him. "Constantine will be no threat to them, even if with his men. And as for the mages, assuming they're even there with the arrogant fool, never forget that Goliath has fought sorcerers before, and will do so again if he has to."

0000000000

**Forests Outside Wyvern:**

Constantine swore below his breath, guessing that whatever magic the mages had used on Katherine had obviously worn off.

'So much for a sorcerer's will,' he mentally sneered.

"How did I come to be here?" Katherine demanded, wondering how she had done so, as the last thing she remembered was heading toward the Rookery.

"Seems as though we're going to have to do this the hard way," Constantine said to her, still with a dark smile upon his face. "Which I'm happy to say is just the way I like it!"

He reached out with his hand again, grabbing the Scottish Princess's arm.

Katherine squealed in fright, attempting to break free of his grasp, but only succeeded in providing a source of amusement for his men, as they laughed at her futile struggle.

After months of seemingly endless humiliation of being married to Goliath, her pride and dignity stretched to exhaustion, and now seeing the man who had murdered her uncle, and his own men laughing at her. That seemed to be the final straw for her, as she glared murderously at them.

Katherine decided right there and then that no matter what, she was _not_ going to go down lightly. One thing she had learned from growing up in a castle full of Gargoyles, and further more from being married to one… was how to be strong, and never give up.

"Let…go…of...MEEEE!" Katherine screamed, as she pulled her arm back with all the strength she could muster, her hatred and anger for this murderer fuelling her desire.

Constantine was, needless to say, more than surprised at this defiance, as well as her strength to break away from him… So surprised he was that he momentarily lost his balance on his horse, causing him to fall over.

"Whoaaa!" Constantine yelled, as he fell off his horse, straight into the mud.

Katherine stood over him defiantly. "And that's where you belong, _pig_!" she shouted, pointing at the mud he was in, before racing off into the woods.

"Don't just stand there, you fools!" Constantine bellowed, his rage all-consuming, as he commanded his men. "_After her_!"

Constantine's soldiers did as they were ordered, galloping their stallions after the fleeing Princess.

Katherine panted, as she ran through the thick bushes and outreached arms of the forest trees. She hissed, as the sharp branches ripped off parts of her dress and scratched her exposed skin.

Still she pressed on, as the sounds of horse's thundering hoofsteps and blades striking the forest growth continued to echo behind her. Followed by the sound of voices in the distance…

"_Find her!"_

"_She can't be too far."_

"_Search that way!" _

"_Do not leave one inch of this forest unturned until you have found her! I want that wench back in my possession before the next few minutes pass!" _

Katherine gasped for breath, as she struggled to press on, running until she thought her feet would fall off. She was fortunate that the thick growth of this forest had slowed her oppressor's hunt long enough, giving her an able start to run from them.

She eventually found her way to a small waterfall, pausing only ever so briefly for a quick breath, but alas she had no time. She soon heard the soldiers drawing closer.

She rushed behind a huge tree, holding her hands to her mouth to stifle the sound of her own breathing.

'Dear God in Heaven,' she prayed. 'Help me.'

**PRESENT TIME: **

Katherine stood as still as she could, her hands trembling as they covered her mouth to stifle her whimpering sounds.

She thought of the baby Gargoyle in the Rookery that she had helped bring into the world. Would he remember her, she thought. Did Gargoyles have that long a memory?

The voices grew louder as they got closer.

Katherine knew Constantine would no doubt take her back alive, as he needed her to wed and bear an heir with her, thereby ensuring his claim to the throne. But as much as she wanted to beg for her own life, she knew she would not…. She could not, not when there were so many other lives at stake.

And she would rather be dead than be married to Constantine.

Katherine had to stifle herself again, though this time it was to suppress laughter. For she had just realised something that she had once thought impossible… Months ago, at her wedding, she had thought that nothing could be more horrendous than being married to Goliath, a Gargoyle.

She had just been proven wrong.

Tears came to her eyes, wishing she could have had more time in this world to do all the good that her father had wanted her to do.

She realised then that with her gone, Goliath would be sole ruler of Wyvern. And if her cousin was truly gone, too, then Goliath might very well have a legitimate claim on not only the throne of Wyvern, but also the throne of Scotland itself.

She stifled another burst of laughter at that. 'If the Church wasn't outraged before,' she thought. 'Then they certainly will be then.'

'Father, I'm sorry,' she thought. 'I'm sorry I didn't uphold your beliefs and honour your wishes, as you wanted. I now know why you did what you did. I'm only sorry I didn't learn your lessons all the more quickly..."

"Found her!" a voice cried out.

The shout at first gave Katherine the urge to start running again, until she realised to her total surprise that she _knew_ this voice, and it wasn't that of Constantine or one of his henchmen, but that of Goliath's Second. Looking up she discovered the large Gargoyle looking down on her, having landed in one of the massive trees.

Before she found enough breath to say anything, Goliath landed in front of her, staring at her with what Katherine recognised as a worried gaze.

"Are you all right?" the large Gargoyle asked his wife.

"I am," she replied, feeling a weight falling from her heart. "Goliath, you don't know how glad I am to..."

"_GOLIATH_?" a voice suddenly yelled from behind the Gargoyle's back. Turning around, the Human and the Gargoyle discovered Constantine arriving on his horse.

The self-made King stared at the unusual couple with widened eyes that possessed a look that was a cross between shock, amazement and horror.

"You are married to… to… _**this**_?" he stuttered.

Staring at Constantine, the murderer of her uncle and maybe even her cousin, Katherine found this answer easy…

"Yes!" she spat at him. "And I would rather be married to him and a thousand other Gargoyles than to you!"

Goliath cocked his eyeridge at her, not knowing whether to feel praised or insulted.

Enraged, Constantine drew his sword. "Then you shall have them all… _in Hell_!" he declared, looking to his men accompanying him. "No woman who willingly gives herself to a demon is of any use to me! Kill them both!"

But just as he shouted this order, Goliath shouted one of his own…

With a short growl the tops of the trees began to rustle, giving Constantine's men just enough time to look up and discover several pairs of lights, red and white, shining down on them, before something swooped down from the trees, throwing them roughly onto the ground from the backs of their horses.

With Constantine still staring unbelieving at how his soldiers were pushed from their steeds so suddenly, Goliath used the opportunity and roared at the horse that Constantine was sitting on, making it rear and dump its rider in fright.

With a large thump, Constantine landed hard on the earth below him, making him curse out loud. As he held his aching back, which was not feeling much better than the rest of his body, Constantine rose with his sword in his free hand to fend off Goliath, though the Gargoyle warrior made no move to attack.

"This isn't over, beast!" he shouted at the Gargoyle, slowly moving backwards as he did so, hearing his men fighting beside him, and judging by what he heard they were doing so rather unsuccessfully.

Cursing below his breath, he ordered "Retreat!" knowing better than to continue fighting when the odds were not in their favour. Especially when the battle could be easily won in a few hours, _at sunrise_.

The few of Constantine's men still able to move followed his order, retreating deeper into the forest while the Gargoyles gathered by their leader and his wife.

"Shall we finish them off?" the Second asked his leader.

"No. Too late, and we don't know if they have reinforcements." Goliath replied, looking at the forest. "Let's go home."

Turning to Katherine, he found her looking at him in a strange way.

"Are you all right?" he asked again, worried that she might be suffering from an after-effect of the magic used on her.

"Yes, but..." the Princess bit her lip. "But why did you risk your life for me… after all I did to you and your clan?"

Goliath looked for a moment at her in surprise, and as the Princess noticed some of the clan shared looks as well.

The clan leader frowned, wondering what to say. He could explain that it was in a Gargoyle's nature to protect those under their protection, but time was not on their side and he had already tried explaining it to her countless times before.

Finally, he just shrugged. "What kind of husband would I be if I didn't protect my own wife?" he said simply, offering her a clawed hand.

After a moment of looking at him in surprise, her face turned into a soft smile and she took his claw, on which he quickly but gently placed her on his back before climbing up the next tree.

0000000000

**Constantine's Camp: **

Constantine strode through his campsite, angrily pushing aside a few of his soldiers as he made his way up to the mages' tent.

"MAGES!" he yelled furiously, his rage making him forget to take care when addressing the five mystics, as he stormed through the opening in the tent. "Where did you learn magic, at a…" He paused.

Staring into the tent, he found the five sorcerers in question standing around, their once fine robes soaked in a dark red liquid.

The Head Mage glared at him. "What is it?" he hissed, his face showing that whatever it was he was definitely not in the mood to discuss anything with Constantine.

But the former Ward of King Kenneth was too enraged at that moment to take a hint, and immediately started…

"You told me Katherine would come to me willingly!" he said accusingly. "You never said that once she got to me the spell would break and she would regain her free will?"

"She wasn't supposed to!" the Head sorcerer countered, incensed. "Someone… _interfered_!"

"What do you mean?"

"The spell was working just fine," one of the many red soaked mages explained. "But then we encountered some interference from another magical source. We can only assume that it must have been the young Magus they have up at the castle. He must have used the Grimorum to counter our spell of control." He spluttered a little, as he wiped more of the red goop off of himself.

"What happened here?" Constantine asked, interested.

One of the younger wizards just muttered something angrily under his breath.

"When the spell was countered," the Head explained. "It caused our potion to spontaneously combust. We were fortunate that it didn't fry us all."

He suddenly remembered… "But what of the Princess? Tell us, did you lay claim to her?"

Constantine glared furiously at him. "Would I be in such a _good_ mood if I had?"

The sorcerer just looked angry, too. "What happened?"

"The Princess regained her free will just as she approached me," the present King seethed. "We chased her for a while, and we were about to capture her when… some of those God forsaken winged demons came down on us! Her _husband_ amongst them!"

The mages all blinked at his last statement. "You mean her husband was flying _with_ the Gargoyles?" one of them asked.

"No, my would-be counsel!" Constantine rebuked him. "Her husband was _one_ of the Gargoyles! It turns out the miserable wench is married to a demon!"

The mages all gasped.

"This was… unforeseen," their leader remarked.

"You have that right, sorcerer!" Constantine declared. "But at least it has solved one problem for now."

"What is that?"

"Well," their so-called Lord scoffed. "I couldn't possibly marry someone, Princess or nay, who has been tainted by a Gargoyle of all things. If word got out that I was wed to a woman such as that, no loyal Scotsman in their right mind would follow me willingly. No! My only course of action now is to secure my right to the throne by wiping out all of Kenneth's bloodline completely. With the exception of Maol Chalvim's daughter who has fled, Katherine is the only living heir. We will attack at dawn and slaughter their entire kingdom!"

The mages all looked at one another, but the Head just sighed and nodded. "As you command… My Liege," he replied.

Constantine smirked and left, shouting out to his soldiers to prepare his army for the final assault.

"Was that wise?" one of the younger mages asked his leader. "I thought we were to hold him from directly attacking the Castle for fear of damaging the sacred book?"

"We were," the ruler of their order frowned. "But you heard him… There was no way we could have prevented him from going into battle now, not with the revelation of Katherine's marriage. Who would have thought it possible, though? A Human married to a Gargoyle?"

His brother sorcerers all muttered in disgust, wondering how any woman would willingly allow herself to be taken by a Gargoyle as its mate.

"There is no way to prevent what is to come," he continued. "Our only hope is to limit the damage. We will join him come the battle, but when the time is right we will depart at the earliest convenience to search the Castle and find the Grimorum. With any luck, everyone will be so busy fighting that they won't notice us, but just in case… Brother, find that old scroll with the spell of illusion that we have. In need be, we will use it to mask our appearance."

One of the four other mages nodded and immediately went to start looking through their masses of belongings, searching for the intended scroll.

"Fear not, friends and brothers," he said assuredly. "This time tomorrow, the Grimorum will finally be where it truly belongs… in our hands!"

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern: **

The Magus paced the stone-floor of the battlements in anxiety, waiting for news of his beloved Princess, the Captain of the Guard watching him. Beyond them there were several soldiers and Gargoyles guarding the battlements. Amongst them were the young Trio. Guard-duty had been added to their long list of extra chores for their punishment for scaring Katherine.

The Wild Four were also on guard duty, but they were on the other side of the castle.

"Magus, be calm," the Captain told him exasperatedly. "Never fear, Goliath has yet to ever fail us, remember that."

"I wish I shared your confidence," the white-haired sorcerer replied. "But I…"

"They're here!" the small green Gargoyle with webwings called out excitedly, as he pointed to the sky.

Sure enough, the small but unmistakable silhouettes of Goliath and the other Gargoyles who had accompanied him were visible in the distance. The Magus held his hands out over the battlements, gripping them anxiously.

A few moments later, Goliath and the others touched down on the castle, and the Magus let loose a huge sigh of relief as he saw the Princess with them, holding onto Goliath's back.

Tears of joy and relief forming in his eyes, part of him wanted to rush forward and embrace her, but he knew better. It would be unseemly and inappropriate for a lowly Magus such as himself to approach royalty in such a manner. He knew his place, however much he wanted to change it.

"HA!" the Captain laughed out loud. "I knew you'd do it, Goliath lad! Some people here had their doubts, but I told' em you would'na let us down!"

Goliath bowed his head shortly. "Thank you, Captain," he said appreciatively. "But we have more pressing concerns for now. Magus! Are you done preparing the spell from the Grimorum?"

The young sorcerer nodded. "I am. Everything is ready. You need only say the word."

"Good," Goliath said with some relief.

"Is this the same spell you talked about before?" a new voice said.

Everyone turned and saw the clan's former leader and Mentor coming up to them from the stairs. His face with the scarred eye was frowning, as it always did when _magic_ was involved in something. "Do we get to know anything about it?"

"You won't only know about it, My Mentor," Goliath said, smiling. "You and the entire clan will also get to be _part_ of it."

"_Huh?" _

0000000000

**Just Before Dawn:**

"The catapults are ready, My Lord," one of Constantine's soldiers reported to him, as he arrived upon a heavily breathing black horse.

"Just in time," his King replied, smiling, as he looked at the sky behind the form of Castle Wyvern in front of them, a sky just turning slightly gold, the beginning of a new day… and the end of Castle Wyvern.

Constantine looked at the battlements of the castle where the few Human defenders were holding their bows ready, their winged comrades' stone-forms nowhere to be seen, probably having searched for a more secure place to rest during the day.

Turning back, he looked to his gathered army, which waited ready for his command to attack... though maybe not eager enough.

"**My loyal men!**" he addressed loudly, waiting until everyone was looking at him. "Today will mark a historic new era!"

With these words he began to ride up and down in front of his soldiers.

"This battle will not only mark the end of the last bastion of defenders of the old cruel oppressor!" he said, thinking on how Kenneth had killed his father, Cuilén, and taken his rightful throne, despite the fact that his father had also killed Kenneth's brother to get the throne. "But also this will give us an opportunity to do God's work by wiping out a lair of hellish creatures that have infected this place for far too long!"

Constantine could hear some cheers, as he turned his horse when he reached one end of his army, but the words he had just spoken were not enough. He still had more to say…

"But this is not even the brunt of the taint of this place! As I learned last night, the corruption here goes even farther than mere man and beast living side by side," he shouted, feeling hot rage filling his veins. "The one who dares to think of herself as kin to the crown, the Princess Katherine, has dared the wrath of God by marrying with the leader of these demons!"

As expected, he could hear some gasps from among his army, making him smile even more.

"Do not lose heart though, my men! For now, by day the demons sleep, having been turned to stone by the light of God, for the creatures of darkness that they are!" Constantine concluded, drawing his sword when once again arriving at the centre of his army. "Who will aid me, aid all humble Christian men, by never letting them wake up again, to kill them and everyone who has associated with them?"

Now _all_ his soldiers cheered fully, as the light of the rising sun turned their swords golden.

Constantine took one last look over his army, and found the mages standing behind the crowd. As his eyes met with their leader, he noticed him nodding at him, causing him to grin.

"**ATTACK!**" he screamed his order, turning back to the castle.

Pushed by his words, the soldiers began to run forward to the castle, with the catapults firing behind them and crumbling parts of the castle's outer walls.

Constantine was still smiling as he watched the attack, watching how his soldiers were already nearing the walls preparing to give eternal rest to the hopelessly outnumbered defenders of a castle structure that was already seeing better days. He knew that soon the battle would be won, Wyvern would be his, and Katherine would be…

"_**RRRRAAARRRRGHHHHHHHH!"**_

Suddenly, a loud roar could be heard from the distance, and the son of Cuilén stared unbelieving up beyond the castle were dozens of Gargoyles came gliding over… _in_ _bright sunlight_?

"Impossible," Constantine stuttered in disbelief. This could not be?

But unbelievable as it was, it was real nonetheless, as the Gargoyles came rushing down on his surprised men, grabbing them by their shoulders, hoisting them up to the heavens where they dropped them down by the dozens.

Realizing the debacle, Constantine turned his head to shout at the five men who had told him that anything like this would be absolutely impossible, but the place where the mages had stood was now empty, and they were nowhere to be seen.

"Traitors!" he snarled under his breath, turning back to the battlefield where his army was now losing, taking heavy causalities from the combined attacks of both Human archers and winged warriors.

But apparently this was not all that they had in mind for them, as he was soon to discover…

In terror, Constantine watched as large balls of fire started soaring down from the castle's highest tower, striking each of the catapults and making them explode one by one.

This was too much for the horse that he sat on, the noise of the explosions and the roaring Gargoyles making it raise its front-legs in sheer terror, tossing its rider off, making him fall facedown in the mud for the second time.

Constantine coughed and spluttered in outrage, as he rose up, wiping the mud from his face, spitting the mud from his mouth and looking for his crown that had fallen off his head. As he did this, he heard the whooshing sound of something approaching from up above.

Looking up, he expected to see another one of those fire-balls ready to roast him alive, like one of the pigs he had had for breakfast, but what he saw nearing him seemed far worse… a single, large winged form.

He recognised who it was at once and drew his sword, aiming it at the arriving Gargoyle.

"How?" Constantine hissed, aiming his drawn sword on the landing Goliath.

"The Grimorum," the warrior leader simply replied. "Our Magus was able to find a spell, which would enable us to remain awake during the day and continue defending the castle."

Constantine swore dangerously. 'Damn confounded magic!' he thought, and then added out loud...

"None of this will help you, monster!" he shouted. "My army shall prevail no matter what! And even if they should fail then more of my loyal forces shall come to my aid! By my own life blood, I swear I will have you and your witch-Queen's bloody heads placed on my castle's highest tower as trophies!"

"Brave words from one who attacked a weak and unarmed man from behind his back," Goliath replied, referring to King Kenneth's murder, growling at the offence against Katherine.

Constantine's nostrils flared, as he glared at the clan-leader.

"You cannot hope to win this day, Constantine," Goliath told him. "My clan and the Humans of Wyvern put us on equal terms with you and your army. But my clan gives Wyvern the advantage. Stand down and you will be spared!"

"_Never_!"

Goliath stared at him and the look in his eyes. He had come to put an end to all this by telling Constantine to surrender, but one look alone in the eyes of this man was enough to tell him that he would never surrender willingly, and that this could end only one way.

As if he had read his thoughts, Constantine attacked… He attacked quickly for a human, and forced Goliath to take a quick step to the left.

Taking the opportunity of an open side, Goliath grabbed the Human's left leg with his tail, making him stumble onto the ground… and into the mud once again.

"This doesn't seem to be your day for garments, does it?" Goliath said amusedly, as the present King of Scotland spat more dirt out, glaring at him. Goliath then stated, "Stand down, Constantine. I was not exaggerating when I said you had no hope against me, and that's a fact. Stand down and you will be well looked after."

If Constantine had been born a Gargoyle, his eyes would be flaring bright silver right then.

Screaming in rage, Constantine leapt out of the mud, racing towards the Gargoyle leader at a speed that anyone would have thought impossible for a Human, aiming his sword straight for Goliath's heart. Yet Goliath made no move to attack or to stop him.

As the demented King charged toward him, Goliath waited until Constantine was less than a man's breath away, and then moved out of the way, taking a sharp sidestep to the right. He had only meant to step out of his way again, but this time something else happened…

Constantine had been so enraged and incensed to attack Goliath that he hadn't noticed the wet and muddy earth below him. He yelled, as he slipped on the slippery mud, sliding right up to Goliath.

As he slid on the soaked earth, past Goliath, Constantine dropped his sword in front of him and tripped over what was either Goliath's tail again or a small rock. The trip caused him to fall literally head over heals, as he did a perfect 3/60 before falling back down to earth… right on top of his sword.

It had happened so fast that when he had dropped his sword, it had not even had a chance to fall completely down yet and thus was still pointing upwards.

Constantine did not have the time to scream or even to make a feeble squeak, as he fell onto the sword, its blade driving right through his throat, almost perfectly slicing his head off, as it came out from behind, killing him at once.

Goliath gave himself a moment to stare at the pitiful scene, knowing that there were for sure more honourable and, not to mention, a lot less ridiculous ways to die... though he did not know many other people who earned a death such as this, more than _this_ man.

Sighing, Goliath looked up from the cooling cadaver, seeing that the battle was going well for the inhabitants of Castle Wyvern. Most of Constantine's men had already seemed to have had enough of this fight, as they were turning to flee, and no doubt the discovery of their leader's death would break the last bit of resistance.

Deciding to make sure that none of his soldiers or siblings would be harmed in the last part of the battle, Goliath climbed the nearest tree and jumped into the sky, gliding straight to the heart of the battlefield.

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern's Highest Tower:**

"They are retreating!" Katherine noticed excitedly, observing the battle below.

The Magus smiled, though he did so weakly because of the spell's power. The first one, which had allowed the Gargoyles to remain as flesh during the day, and then the second spell that had created the fireballs had drained him greatly. Despite his mastery of the Grimorum, which now lay on the battlement before him, the casting of such powerful enchantments was draining for any sorcerer.

"This is wonderful, My Princess." he said.

"We wouldn't have been able to do this without you," she noted, giving him a smile.

The Magus's smile grew larger and he wanted to respond, but just as he opened his mouth to speak he felt something like a bee-sting on his neck, and his body suddenly stiffened.

"Whaaooohhhh…" the Magus groaned, as he fell to the side unconscious.

"Magus!" Katherine shouted, rushing to his side and gazing down in worry, not noticing that five figures had suddenly appeared at the tower's steps. She had barely enough time to register the small dart that was pinned in his neck when…

"Oh, no need to worry, Your Highness," a voice spoke out from behind her.

Katherine spun around and saw five strangely clothed men, dressed in long flowing robes, each with a different colour and a strange crest embroided on them.

The one who appeared to be the leader of the group was an ancient looking man, bald and dressed in a silver robe with a gold crest of a dragon and a moon sewn on it. He stood at the door, smiling an all too fake smile at her, as he said with false friendliness, "My companion only knocked him out."

He pointed to one of the other men beside him, who was holding a blast-pipe in his hand.

"What do you want?" Katherine shouted at them, placing herself between the mages and the Magus's unconscious form. She asked the question even though she already knew the answer, as these men could only be the five mages that the Lady Finella had warned them about, the five sorcerers who had sided with Lord Constantine to gain possession of the Grimorum.

"Oh, I think by now you have figured out what we want," the leading mage said while his comrade reloaded the blast-pipe. "Though a hostage in addition might come in handy, in case there is someone nearby who is not too occupied with fighting their little war."

Katherine shivered, for she knew there was no one to stop them now, as everyone was busy fighting in the battle.

"Take the Grimorum," he ordered the two mages to his left, and then said to the other two on his right. "And you, take her!"

The two mages walked in her direction, and the other two headed toward the Grimorum. The Princess prepared to at least fight back, but strangely they paid her little heed and **both** pairs ended up walking straight to the magic book.

"Take her, you fool!" one of them from the left said, pushing one of the other two from the right aside.

"He meant you!" the second defended himself, pushing the first back.

"I am of a higher rank than you, _you_ get her!" the first replied, holding his fellow mage by his robe, thus effectively stopping him.

"Stop this or I will turn you both into women so you can grab yourselves!" the ancient mage shouted at the younger sorcerers. "Remember, according to our Order, I as Head Mage shall alone use the Grimorum and no one else."

While they quarrelled amongst themselves, Katherine used the moment to take a look at the mystical book, which was still lying undisturbed on the battlement ledge.

'If I can just grab it quickly enough,' she thought.

She knew she couldn't use it, as she wasn't trained in sorcery, but throwing it off the tower would at least thwart the sorcerer's plans for now, and maybe even get her the attention of some of the soldiers if...

Suddenly, a loud snarl interrupted them.

The thoughts of the Princess and the quarrel between the mages were stopped when a lean winged figure landed gracefully on the place where Goliath had once slept, but it was not the clan-leader who had landed.

The mages and Katherine stared surprised at the newcomer, a red-haired and azure-skinned Gargess that just had landed above the Grimorum. She paid the book seemingly little attention, but stared at the scene before her intensely.

At first, Katherine thought the female Gargoyle would help her regardless, as Goliath and most of the others of their clan had done so far, but then she met the Gargess's eyes, which were full of doubt and conflict.

Katherine knew who this Gargess was and why she wasn't acting immediately. She recognised her as Goliath's former mate whom he had been involved with years before. She had by now long since guessed that the reason for their break-up had been because of his betrothal to her, and it was doubtful that this was something that this female had been able to forgive.

But even if that weren't the case, she knew that out of all the Gargoyle clan this one was the one who least liked her and her kind. She remembered seeing the hostile look in her eyes when she had been but a child, and that look had not lessened in later years. In fact, she looked all the more incensed if anything.

"Gargoyle!" the Head Mage said out loud. "We hold no quarrel with you. We desire only the Grimorum and this one Human." He then smiled. "We know of the… _disputes_ you have had with this woman over the years. She is no friend to your clan, even if she is married to one of your kind now. You owe her no allegiance nor any loyalty for the way she has mistreated you. Let us have her and the Grimorum, depart in peace, and you shall hear no more from us. We give you our solemn oath, the oath of a sorcerer."

Katherine held her breath in fear, as a sorcerer's oath was a sacred and magically binding vow. Not even the Archmage who had made a few oaths in his time had ever been able to break one of those. For if a sorcerer ever attempted such a thing it would mean the instant loss of all their powers.

She stared into the eyes of the Gargoyle, seeing the conflict within them, the conflict of the choice whether to help a Human who had shown little more than contempt for her and her clan for most of her life… or just turning around and leaving her to her fate.

Katherine didn't know what to do. Part of her wanted to fall down on her knees and beg for the Gargess's help, but she didn't know if that would do any good. She also knew from reputation how proud and stubborn this warrioress was. She doubted that a pitiful show of weak-willed pleading would impress her.

She thought back on how she had treated this Gargoyle and all her clan, and she couldn't help but think at that moment 'If I had treated them all with more respect, I would not even need to ask for her help.'

So, for now all she could do was stare at the large female, her eyes doing all the pleading.

The azure warrior stared at the Human who had shown her kind nothing but hatred, even after she had been mated to Goliath… the Gargoyle who should have been _her_ mate.

She found herself breathing very hard, her fists clenched and her fangs grinding. She remembered how this brat had enjoyed seeing those of her clan in trouble, had taken every opportunity to insult, humiliate and discredit them. If anything she wanted very much to leave this blasted Human to her fate and to Hell with her. The sorcerers had given their word, one she knew to be impossible to break, and no one would know she had even seen them. She could just glide away and pretend to have seen nothing, and the Princess would be gone forever.

Yet when she decided to give one final look into her hated enemy's eyes before leaving, she saw nothing of the spoilt brat she had watched grow up and suffered from in Castle Wyvern. Instead, all she could see was a frightened young woman, silently pleading for her help with her tear-filled eyes.

She remembered how Goliath had risked and sacrificed everything to wed her, just so that he could attempt to create a better future for their clan, and to teach this Human the art of humility. She had thought him a fool for it, never believing for one instant that the Princess Katherine would ever change her views about anything. And yet, for the last month or so, she had been speaking to various clan-members with friendliness and respect, including Goliath, and had even been playing with the hatchlings, something she would have thought impossible.

Could it be that there was hope for her after all?

She found herself wrestling with a conscience she hadn't known she even possessed anymore, at least when concerning this particular Human. She still wanted nothing more than to leave this Human to her fate, let her suffer the way she had made her and her clan suffer, but then she remembered something else…

She remembered once when she had been young and she had asked Goliath how he was able to keep so calm and composed when dealing with the Humans, why he never took umbrage at the way they were treated by them, and why he never fought back?

He had told her about an old book, even older than the Grimorum, that was considered sacred by Humans, but with no apparent magic within it. The book they called the Bible, which Brother Edmund had apparently dedicated his whole life to.

Brother Edmund had once read some of it to him, and had recited an old phrase from it, one that had stayed with him ever since… 'Do onto others as you would have them do onto you'.

If they wanted to be treated with respect then first they would have to show respect to their neighbours, or so Goliath had told her. She hadn't known what to make of his words, but he seemed to believe that the only way they could ever hope to be accepted was to first be accepting of others.

She took one more look at the Princess and finally made her choice…

She quickly snatched the book at her feet, causing the Princess some alarm as she thought she would just simply glide away with it, but instead the azure warrioress opened the Grimorum, turning its pages furiously.

"Come along now, you dumb beast," the Head Mage said, looking bemused at the Gargess. "Don't be more stupid than the whole of your kind put together. Hand the book over to me now before you... "

The Gargess' eyes turn deep red at his words, and she began to speak, her voice rising along with one of her claws that moved in a complicated gesture, as she recited…

_"_Diana, dea animales mangornum parvorumque, veni gloriam te facere!" _(Diana, Goddess of creatures great and small, come forth to work your glory!)_

Katherine stared at her in total surprise. She knew what she was saying, as she understood Latin, and she also knew that what she was speaking could only be a spell, as it had come straight from the Grimorum. But what was a Gargoyle doing knowing sorcery of all things? She had never even heard of a Gargoyle knowing anything about magic before now.

The eyes of all five mages widened in surprise. Not merely because the Gargess was speaking in Latin, but because she could actually read in the first place.

"How…" the Head Mage began, but he never got to even add the second word of his sentence. "…HEE-HAW!"

The sorcerer snapped his mouth shut in shock, his fellow sorcerers looking at him in surprise, and raised his hand as though to cover it, but when he did he discovered that his hand was no longer a hand… The fingers of both his hands had now fused together, the skin peeling off to reveal nothing but hard bone.

Katherine resisted the urge to burst out laughing, as she watched the five men before her start to undergo some kind of metamorphosis.

The mages stared at each other, their mouths wide open, as the ears on each of them started to grow long, pointy and hairy, and their two front-teeth grew larger and buck-toothed.

"NOOOOO!" they all screamed, followed by their leader who yelled. "You can't do this! You can't… HEE-HAW! HEE-HAW! HEE-HAW!" Whatever words he then tried to speak were drowned into a chaotic rhythm of an all too recognisable sound.

The rest of the mages were quick to follow him, as their screams fell into the same screeching sound as their leader. They began to fall to their hands and feet, now also turning into hooves, their faces growing longer, on which grey hair started to sprout.

In just fifteen seconds, where once five mages had stood now stood five confused and horrified looking donkeys… or a better and more accurate name 'Jackasses'.

One of the mages, when he fell to the ground on all fours, tried to get back up but could not succeed. He started kicking his legs out from beneath him, hee-hawing hysterically. The others all just stood about, moving from side to side or just standing very still with horrified expressions upon their faces, which was very unusual to see on a donkey.

"How… where… However did you learn to do that?" Katherine said, her face betraying her amazement. "How long have you..."

"No one knows," the Gargess said as she closed the book, trying not to look at the Human's face. Instead she kept her gaze on the five jackasses. "No one must find out! The Archmage taught me in secret before he taught the Magus. If my clan were to learn... "

"The Archmage?" Katherine all but yelled.

The Gargoyle sorceress threw the Grimorum down on the ground beside the Magus. 'I should have known better!' she thought angrily. She had allowed herself one moment of weakness by not letting the mages carry Katherine off, and now she was going to pay the price for it. The miserable wench would no doubt reveal her secret to all, and once her clan learned that she had been the Archmage's apprentice they would have no choice but to banish her.

While the former love of Goliath stood chewing on her lower lip, trying to muster up all the inner courage she could for when she would have to face the clan, Katherine stared at her with her mouth feeling as dry as a bone.

'The Archmage! This damned...' she remembered the night the dark sorcerer had attacked her father, and how the former Gargoyle leader had been unable to protect him.

'Unable?' It was strange for her to think of him being _unable_ to save her father instead of just being unwilling, as she had always made herself believe.

She wanted to say something hard, to give the icy anger she felt inside something to aim at, and from the expression she saw on the Gargess's face it wouldn't come unexpected. But before she could say anything, the five former mages began hee-hawing again, and she looked at them, remembering that this apprentice of the Archmage had just undoubtedly saved her life.

She then also remembered the Magus who was still lying unconscious behind her, and who had learned by the same master, yet always used his skill for the best of the kingdom.

"I..." the Princess began, but was interrupted by the sounds of wings.

Goliath suddenly landed on the ground between her and his former would-be mate.

"Princess, what happened?" he asked worriedly, noticing the unconscious Magus behind her. "Were you attacked by…?"

That was then when he discovered the five jackasses, three in robes and two others with robes lying on the ground beneath them, standing around and staring up at him in what could only be described as pure fear.

"What happened?" he asked finally, looking to his sister who bore an unhappy expression but remained silent, and then to his wife.

Katherine did not say anything at first, looking as though she were at a loss for words, but then she spoke…

"The mages attacked us," she said, pointing on the five donkeys. "The Magus and myself were here when they showed up out of nowhere. They were after the Grimorum as we suspected, but your clan-sister came to our rescue. She protected us while the Magus managed to cast a spell on them before they knocked him out with a poison dart." She pointed at the dart sticking in the Magus's neck.

Goliath blinked. "_Those_… are the mages?" he asked, staring at the four-legged hee-hawers.

Katherine nodded. "The Magus used a spell form the Grimorum to change them into their present forms," she explained.

Goliath's sister looked for a moment in genuine surprise at the Princess while her leader just nodded.

"Err… well done," he said uncertainly, still staring at the five mage-donkeys, praising his former love before turning back to Katherine. "I need to go back to the battlefield. Wait inside until my return."

The Princess nodded, and Goliath jumped onto the battlement to leave, but not before casting one last look on his sister, which she didn't really notice.

He sighed, but there was a smile upon his face, glad that his former Angel had seemingly worked out her anger towards Katherine at long last.

The clan-leader then spread his wings and glided away.

"Why?" the secret redheaded sorceress asked, jumping down from the battlement to stand beside the Human.

"Well, you said no one should know of your secret, and since you did save me..." the Princess stopped, staring into the still doubting eyes of the Gargess, and then added simply. "I owed you."

The former Angel of Goliath still looked a bit unbelieving; pondering the reality of these words, but then gave a deep sigh. "Thank you," she said finally.

Katherine seemed hesitant to begin with, but gradually she reached out her hand, offering it to the azure-skinned warrior, and after a moment of surprise the Gargess accepted it, giving the Human the first real smile she had ever given her.

"You're welcome," Katherine replied.

0000000000

**Four Hours Later: **

The rest of the battle had continued to go excellently in their favour. Together, the two clans of Wyvern had won the day by driving most of Constantine's forces to flee, with the exception of a few soldiers who had been taken prisoner. Their fate had yet to be deemed by Goliath and Katherine.

The Magus, although still weak and half conscious from the poison dart that the mages had used on him, seemed to be making a full recovery. He had been most fortunate that the dart had merely had on it a sleeping potion. The only problem he had at the moment was trying to keep himself from yawning every three minutes.

After he had awakened, Katherine had talked to him privately, asking him to lie to Goliath by telling him that he had cursed the mages, transforming them into their present forms, before they had shot him with the dart. The Magus had asked her about it even though he would have gladly lied for her, but she had merely replied by telling him that she had a promise to keep, to someone whom she owed her life to, and she hoped he would respect her decision and do this one thing or her.

Of course he would, as the Magus would walk barefoot into Hell for her, and thus he had told Goliath the lie. The Gargoyle Prince had suspected nothing, accepting the Magus's explanation, and all was well again.

As for the mages themselves, they had for the time being been set up in their own private donkey-pen in the castle-courtyard where they were now currently spending their time hee-hawing at every by-passer who came their way. Though what they were attempting to say was anyone's guess.

Once everything had more or less been settled, at least for the present, life in some parts of the castle had started to get back to normal. The only exception to this was that the spell on the Gargoyles was still effective, and they were still walking about in daylight.

0000000000

Goliath stood on the battlements of Wyvern's highest tower, his roosting spot, as he stared out over the landscape, the sun shining in the distance.

The harsh light of the sun hurt his eyes, since his kind were not used to it, being creatures of the night and all, yet he could not tear his sight away from the unnameable beauty.

He was not the only one either, as nearly all of his clan were at that moment standing at various spots around the whole kingdom, watching the earth's fiery star as though they were afraid it would just suddenly disappear. Every Gargoyle from the night they had been hatched had dreamt of one day seeing the sun, but none had ever lived that dream… until now.

"Goliath?" the voice of the clan's former leader spoke.

Goliath briefly shook his head out of his reverie. "My Mentor?" he asked.

"Forgive me," the elder said, as he too gazed out over the horizon. "I did not wish to disturb you, but…" He paused for a moment, once more taking in the indescribable picture before him. "Tis quite a sight, is it not?"

Goliath nodded. "There are no words to describe this," he said simply. "I have heard numerous stories from the Humans all my life about its golden beauty, but… Now I see they were understating the truth. I've forever dreamed of feeling its golden warmth."

His Mentor sighed, closing his one eye for a moment, feeling the sun's glow on his rough skin. "Yuir not the only one, lad." In truth, he was feeling a little overwhelmed by it all, the sight and the sun's golden touch. The Humans had often said that everything looked different in the daylight, which he could now see was true.

During the night, the landscape was dark and often quiet save for the night-creatures such as Badgers, Foxes and such. But now it was like it had come alive. The day was filled with the sound of birds singing, with the sun shining on everything, bringing out countless colours… From the fields that were once a dull moss colour now a bright emerald green, the endless flowers that sprung open to show off their colourful brilliance to embrace the sun's rays, to the waters on the rivers and ocean that sparkled with the light like a billion stars.

It was breathtaking, plain and simple... far more than anything any Gargoyle, let alone he, had ever imagined seeing.

When they had first agreed to undertake the Magus's spell they had done so because it had been the only way to defeat Constantine, but now… If he had known it would be like this, he might very well have begged to have the Magus cast his enchantment on him years ago.

"Err, Goliath," the aged warrior repeated, shaking his head. "The Captain wishes to speak with you, urgently."

"What about?" Goliath forced his sight away from the sun to look at him.

"About some of the soldiers from Constantine's army who we took prisoner," his advisor explained. "Apparently, they would like to negotiate for their freedom."

Goliath frowned. He was actually a little glad at the sound of this, as he had been secretly dreading what they were to do about the soldiers. He saw no reason in keeping them, as the war was over, Constantine was dead and keeping them would be pointless. But he knew how Humans were in this kind of situation. Despite the end of the war, Humans had a tendency to execute those who had been their enemy in a battle.

To him, killing in the heat of battle was one thing… but not like this. He could not stomach the thought of ending another person's life needlessly, even if they had once been their enemy on the battlefield. If it were up to him completely, he would just let them go.

But unfortunately, things were not always that simple.

He may be the ruler of Castle Wyvern, but as Regent he knew he had to consider the thoughts and feelings of all those under his rule, not just his clan, and he could not just act on his own opinion. If all of the Humans wanted these men's heads on spikes then he couldn't say no, not without making it appear that he was favouring his own preferences, and those of his own kind, above theirs. He had worked too long and hard to bridge the gap between their two races, and couldn't risk anything jeopardising that.

"What do they have in mind?" he asked finally.

"They claim to have knowledge concerning Princess Katherine's cousin, Prince Maol Chalvim."

Goliath's ears pricked up at that. That sounded just like the kind of thing he was hoping for! If there was even a chance that Katherine's cousin was still alive, then he didn't doubt she would do anything to learn everything she could, even if it might mean releasing them.

"I will speak to them at once!"

0000000000

From the battlements on the other side of the castle, four young Gargoyles were also marvelling at the beauty of the sun.

Since the beginning of their _day_ would not officially start till sunset, the Wild Four did not have to start their chores until then. Like many of the Gargoyles of their clan, they had spent most of their time observing the land around them, looking at how different everything looked with the sun shining on them.

"I never thought anything could be so beautiful," the smoke-black one said, breathing in wonder through his small beak. "Who would have thought there were so many colours in the world? No wonder the humans prefer the day to night."

The large Green one with the long spikes on his knees and shoulders merely gave a loud _humph_. "Personally, I find this whole day thing to be overrated," he said.

His rookery brother sneered at him. "Wet blanket," he called him.

His brother and fellow trickster was about to respond when their sensitive ears picked up sounds coming from below them.

The four of them looked down into the courtyard where they could see the stables and the small part of the yard where they kept the animals. Within it they saw the small pen that had been built a short time ago, currently housing Wyvern's newest animal additions, the five former mages now turned into donkeys.

The four of them still found it hard not to laugh whenever they looked at the jackasses, and they were not the only ones. Nearly every man, woman and child of both clans had to stifle a giggle whenever they passed the sorcerer's pen and the sorcerers began hee-hawing at them.

Two of the donkeys were naked like ordinary animals, but the other three still wore the robes they had worn when Human. The five of them all wore unusual expressions on their long faces, looking exceedingly miserable, scared, angry… and, no doubt, humiliated.

The four young warriors had to admit that the Magus had chosen well when cursing the mages. The spell suited them.

They had been told who had done what to the five enemy sorcerers a few hours ago by one of their other rookery siblings. Rumours about the battle had been escalating around the castle the second it had ended, all about each and every warrior's exploits and victories, including the Magus's.

"Hey, I've got a good idea!" the large crested and light brown-skinned one said to the others. "What say we have some fun with the former mages?"

The others looked at him curiously.

"What did you have in mind?" the short red-skinned one with the beak asked.

The crested one grinned. "Anyone know where we can find our large ocean-coloured brother of the Trio?"

0000000000

**One Hour Later: **

Katherine sat in her room, resting on her bed. She had had very little sleep because of the battle and had been left feeling terribly exhausted.

Unfortunately, life for a Princess wasn't about getting your own way all the time. Katherine rarely, if ever, got what she wanted.

[KNOCK! KNOCK!]

Katherine groaned, as the knocking on her door interrupted her sleep.

'Is it too much to want to get even a little sleep?' she thought, but said out loud, "Come in."

The door opened to reveal Goliath, which surprised Katherine greatly. She had not known her husband to knock or _ask_ for entry in months, not since he had demanded that she treat him with respect and equal rights. Since she had more or less refused, he had taken control of everything including her room and as such had not bothered knocking anymore.

"Has something else happened?" she asked urgently. Despite the battle being long over, Constantine dead and his army disbanded, she still feared the worst.

Goliath nodded, but his face bore no worry on it. "I have just been speaking to Constantine's soldiers in our dungeon," he explained. "They said they wished to negotiate for their freedom in exchange for some information."

Katherine scoffed. "What could they possibly have that could be of any interest to me?" If it were left entirely up to her then they would have executed them by now for treason, by serving the man who had killed her uncle and cousin.

"Knowledge of your cousin, Prince Maol Chalvim," Goliath replied. "He is alive, and they know the location where he is being held."

Katherine perked up. "Truly? My cousin lives?"

"Indeed," Goliath told her. "They claim that Constantine had the Prince captured and brought before him alive so that he could gloat. Apparently he had the mages curse him, turning him into stone. When they last saw his stone-form, he was being kept in Constantine's throne-room."

Katherine frowned, but nodded. "If they are telling the truth then I consent with you to grant them their request, but how do we know if it is the truth they speak?"

"I had the Magus with me during their questioning. I warned them that if they told us anything false then the Magus would surely know about it and that he would punish their dishonesty by doing to them what he did to Constantine's mages."

Katherine smiled at that. Goliath just assumed it was because of what he had said about the Magus, but of course he knew nothing of what had truly happened on the tower between the mages and his former beloved.

"That would be enough to convince them, surely," Katherine admitted. "Very well then, release them. If it is a spell that holds my dear cousin prisoner, then the Magus will surely be able to break it. The soldiers can accompany him and ours on their journey to where Maol Chalvim is being held."

"That might be a problem, Katherine," Goliath said suddenly.

Katherine stared at him. "What do you mean?"

Goliath turned to look at the door. "Magus, enter!" he called out.

A second later, the sorcerer walked through the doorway, looking apologetically at his Princess. "My Princess," he greeted her, and then yawned. Obviously, the sleeping potion had still not worked its way out of his system yet.

"Magus, please explain," Katherine asked hurriedly. "What is the problem concerning my cousin?"

The Magus sighed. "As I told Goliath, I could release the spell placed upon the Prince," he explained. "But only if I knew what kind of the spell they used on him. There are a number of different spells from the Grimorum that I could use to break the enchantment, but if I used the wrong one then it could end disastrously."

Katherine gasped. "How so?"

"The mages use spells that they have obviously taken from various lands, as we discovered when they attempted to enslave your mind," he continued. "There's no telling what spell they used to curse your cousin. If I attempted to use a spell from the Grimorum, which originated from one country, to undo the spell they used that might have come from another… Well, as I once told you, mixing magics is dangerous work. It could have serious consequences, perhaps even fatal to your cousin."

Katherine closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. "What do you suggest?" she asked.

"There's only one thing we can do now, Princess," Magus said sorrowfully. "The only way I can help your cousin is by finding out which spell the mages used on him, and the only ones who can tell us that are they and Constantine who was with them at the time… and Constantine is now dead."

The Princess hissed. "You're asking to have these villainous black-magic worshippers released as though nothing ever happened?" she said unbelieving.

"No, Katherine," Goliath interrupted briefly. "We are merely laying out all the options available to you, which sadly are not that many. But even if we did release the mages, the Magus has assured me they will not go unpunished for their crimes."

"What do you mean?"

"I have searched through the Grimorum and found the spell we need," the Magus spoke again. "It will return the mages to their proper forms, but at a price… _to them_."

0000000000

A short time later, the Princess, Magus and Goliath made their way down to the courtyard where the five former mages were being kept.

As they arrived in the courtyard, they met up with the Trio and the four other young Gargoyles who had terrified Katherine with their game of 'Catch' some months ago. They appeared as though they were on their way to the donkey-pen as well.

"What are you seven up to?" Goliath asked, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Err… nothing," the red one of the Trio said nervously, whilst all the others gave equally nervous smiles.

Goliath gave them all a long look, but in the end decided he had more important things to deal with now than spying on immature Gargoyles, and walked on ahead.

Katherine spared them a glance, but said nothing as she followed her husband.

"Err, Your Highness?" the green web-winged one and the smoke-black one with the beak both said simultaneously.

Katherine paused briefly, giving them a hard stare. "What is it?" she asked.

The two smallest members of both their groups pawed nervously at the ground with their hand-claws.

"We just wanted to say…" the green one said.

"Well, that we are…" the black one continued.

"What we're trying to say is…"

"What is it?" Katherine said impatiently. "I have somewhere I need to be right now, so please hurry."

"We wanted to say we were sorry," they both finished together.

Katherine looked at them for a few moments. "Oh," she said finally.

"That goes for all of us, too," the red one with no hair added.

"Yes, including us," the large crested one stated.

"We never meant to hurt you," the tall red one with the long beak said. "We were… I guess we were all feeling pretty hurt by what you had said to us before, but that was no excuse for the way we treated you. I'm… _we're_ all sorry anyway."

Katherine said nothing for a moment, as she looked at them all curiously. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the Magus calling out for her.

"I have to go," she said, but before she left she then added. "I accept your apology, and…" She paused. "And I apologise also for the way I treated you. I should not have been so unkind and disrespectful."

The young warriors all stared at her in surprise, but she left before giving either of them a chance to say anymore.

Katherine soon reached Goliath and the Magus at the pen where even now the five donkeys were hee-hawing like mad, scrambling to get away from the lavender giant and the robed Magus.

"You are sure they will be able to understand us?" Goliath whispered to the Magus.

The sorcerer nodded. "The spell that was cast on them was designed to only change their outer appearance, but not their minds. Spiritually and mentally speaking they should still be the same as they were before their transformation."

Goliath nodded, and then slowly approached the edge of the pen, speaking lowly but clearly. "Mages," he said, addressing the pen's current residences. "Listen to me; I have a proposition for you."

The five jackasses did not come near him, but their ears pricked up at the sound of the word 'proposition,' which did not help anyone better control their amusement. At the sight of their ears snapping to attention, Goliath had to literally bite his tongue to keep from laughing out loud, a reaction that was shared by the Magus and Katherine also.

"We… we know what you did to Princess Katherine's cousin, Prince Maol Chalvim," Goliath talked as though he was breathing hard, but only because of his difficulty to control his laughter. "We also know of the spell you cursed him with."

Goliath swallowed hard, regaining some of his self-control and composure. "Our Magus requires your help in undoing the spell. If you agree to do this, then we will reverse the spell that was cast on you thus give you back your true forms, along with your freedom. Refuse… and you can look forward to a future of carrying heavy goods and eating hay in this pen for the rest of your lives."

The jackasses stared at him in horror, as they began hee-hawing again like crazy.

"Silence!" Goliath boomed, his thundering voice quietening everyone, even making Katherine and the Magus jump slightly. "Be warned, sorcerers… We are not so naïve or foolish enough to just give you back your true forms and release you. Our Magus has read from the Grimorum and learnt of the spell to change you back, but also of a way to permanently bind your powers so that you may never practise sorcery again."

If the former mages weren't horrified before, then they certainly were now. For a sorcerer to lose their power was like having a farmer banned from ever touching soil again, or a great King reduced to life as a beggar. Needless to say, it was like a fate worse than death for them.

"Those are our terms, sorcerers," Goliath stated. "Either you cooperate and decide to live lives as free mortal _men_… or continue as you are, living life as a jackass. Walk forward if you agree."

The five transformed sorcerers stayed where they were for a few moments, each pawing at the ground with their hooves as though in a state of agitation. When it seemed as though they would never make up their minds, the one donkey at the front that was dressed in a silver robe walked forward, the others following him and his movements exactly.

The five donkey-mages stood before the Gargoyle Regent, each holding its head low as if in submission. It was clear they had no choice in the matter, as what was the alternative… spend eternity eating hay?

Goliath nodded in approval. "A very wise decision," he told them, though from the look they cast his way it was clear they did not share his optimism.

"Magus, have the preparations been made?" Goliath turned to the white-haired wizard.

The Magus nodded. "The spell is in the Grimorum and ready to use," he stated. "I talked to the Captain, and he is already arranging a group of soldiers to come with me and Constantine's former soldiers to wherever they are holding Prince Maol Chalvim's stone-body. After I have reversed the spell on the mages, we will leave on our journey immediately. Once I am there, I will reverse the spell on the Prince and then return."

"You are certain you will be able to bind the mages' powers effectively?"

The keeper of the Grimorum nodded. "Indeed. The spell is composed of powerful and delicate magic, but is fairly simple to use. I can cast it right here if you wish?"

Katherine gave a long frown, making them both look on her worriedly.

"It's the only way, Your Highness," the Magus assured her, ignoring the increase of hee-haws behind him who were obviously eager for their return back to humanity, knowing that she was not too keen on the idea of letting these power-mad sorcerers go. "Without them, I cannot hope to release your cousin from their curse. The risk to him would be too great."

The Princess sighed, nodding at him. "I know," she said admittedly. "But it just makes me so mad that the only punishment that each of these cowardly magicians will get is to spend a short time as an ass."

"And be stripped of all their powers, Highness," he told her. "For any sorcerer, especially ones as powerful as these, to lose all their magic is a fate worse than death for them."

Katherine was about to say something further when…

"Who says that's the only punishment they have to get?" a new voice suddenly spoke up.

The three of them turned in surprise to see the seven young Gargoyles whom they thought had left, standing right behind them.

"What are you young ones doing here?" Goliath demanded, staring at them hard.

"We were… listening," the crested one of the Wild Four said hesitantly.

"We were curious about what was going on," the web-winged one of the Trio added.

"So you decided to eavesdrop on other people's conversations," Goliath stated none too approvingly. "Didn't the elders ever teach you not to do such a thing?"

"Umm," the crested one said unsurely. "They might have mentioned something about it, yes."

Goliath gave them a thin-eyed look.

"But anyway," the younger warrior quickly said. "We overheard what you were saying and… Well, we were thinking, and I can't stress enough on the word _thinking, _about what you were planning to do with the err… _mages_."

"What about them?" Goliath asked curiously.

"Well," the tall one from the Trio added, but paused. "Actually, maybe we should speak to Princess Katherine first about this. Would you mind, Your Highness?"

Katherine raised her eyebrows in question, but nodded and walked a little forward with the two groups of Gargoyle youngsters until they were out of earshot of the two adults.

The tall one from the Trio eased his long beak up to Katherine's ear, seemingly whispering something to her and pointing his talon at the larger member of his small group who smiled briefly at her.

The others around them seemed to be acting a little excited, smirking and such, the way they usually were whenever they were planning something, which made Goliath all the more nervous.

Eventually they finished talking, and Katherine started to walk back towards Goliath and the Magus, but she did it with a smirk on her face.

Goliath quirked an eyeridge at her, wondering what she and the youngsters had been discussing, as did the Magus.

"What have they been saying?" he asked her when she came back up to them.

Katherine didn't answer, and just asked the Magus another question. "Magus, the spell to return the mages to human, do you need to cast it straight away or can it be done anytime?"

The Magus looked confused, but nodded. "Yes, Princess. The spell has no time limit on it."

"Good. What about the Captain? You said he had already begun making arrangements for your journey to my cousin. How long will that take?"

"At least another few hours or so. The Captain still has to gather some food, and for that we will need to pick fresh fruit and vegetables from our farmlands. And some of the men have yet to be seen by the court physician for their wounds received in the battle."

"That should give us plenty of time then."

"For what, Katherine?" Goliath said, looking perplexed at her.

Katherine turned her head to look at the five disgruntled Asses. "I agree with your young warriors, Husband," she said to him. "Who is to say that this punishment is the only one they should have?"

The Magus shrugged. "What do you have in mind, Princess?"

Katherine walked up to the pen, gazing in and addressing its five occupants. "While the Captain is busy preparing everything for the Magus's journey, and you are stuck in these forms, you can make yourselves useful by… completing a _small_ task for me."

She gave them a hard but amused stare. "I have always meant to time how long it would take someone to reach Wyvern's nearest hill in case of an emergency. So I will time how long it takes each of you to get there to be sure. Naturally, we will send someone with you in case of any danger or if you try to escape, however unlikely that will be. But because everyone is still recovering from the battle, we will only be able to send one with you; hence each of you will have to go separately, one by one."

The nearest hill that she spoke of was a great tall one just around the edge of the forest. It was not all that far, but it was still a good half hour walk, and the climb up the hill was bitter work for the legs. Even Gargoyles were often left feeling tired after climbing it.

Goliath blinked. "And who is to be accompanying them?" he asked.

Katherine only smiled, as she heard someone approaching from behind them.

They turned and saw the large aquamarine Gargoyle of the Trio, as he came up to the pen.

"Oh and just so you know," Katherine suddenly added, still addressing the mages in their pen. "Because you are still technically prisoners of war until the Magus releases you, that means you five will be doing _all_ the walking."

The donkey-mages began hee-hawing again crazily, as the huge young Gargoyle stood before them like a giant, not as big as Goliath, but who more than made up for his lack of height with the mass in his stomach.

The aquamarine Gargoyle grinned down on the five former mages, who at that moment looked terrified beyond belief, before grabbing his stomach with both his hand-claws, lifting it all the way up to his chest, only to release it as it came down with a loud flop like a large barrel full of wine.

"Who's up for a walk?" he said, grinning like mad.

0000000000

**A Few Hours Later: **

The mages had, needless to say, been _more_ than reluctant to allow the thick aquamarine Gargoyle to ride on their backs out of Wyvern, but unfortunately, the worst part about being a donkey is that you don't have a voice with which to speak out your opinion. And the fact that the person insisting on riding you is a six-foot tall Gargoyle with large fangs and claws, and who could flatten you in one go doesn't help much either.

It was taking some time for him to ride each of the five donkeys out to their destination and then return to ride the other four, but if he was bored with his task then he didn't show it. In fact, the young Gargoyle seemed to be enjoying it thoroughly.

No one knew which of the five mage-donkeys that the young Gargoyle rode out first, since they had all now lost their robes and it was impossible to tell them apart. But whoever it was, he made himself known by the eccentric heehawing that echoed throughout the whole castle courtyard.

The heavy Gargoyle always started out each journey by first silently taunting each of the four-legged mages. He did this first by swaying his hips from side to side in front of the donkey to show that he was getting ready to sit down, but always took his sweet time as he slowly moved to the donkey's side before swinging his leg over to mount.

The first donkey wouldn't stop heehawing, as the enormous Gargoyle had come around him… but he certainly shut up when he sat down on him.

It was very likely that the mage would have continued his insistent and annoying cries if he could, but the crushing weight of the aquamarine heavyweight on his back no doubt left him with very little air in his lungs to do so.

"Giddeyup, Jenny!" the Gargoyle called out with visible pleasure. He had heard some of the humans say that when they rode their own donkeys. He didn't know what the Jenny part meant, as he was sure none of them had been named Jenny, but he guessed that 'Giddeyup' meant something like 'hurry up.'

He really was enjoying himself, as he was not used to riding anything on four legs, the reason being not just because of his huge mass, but because a lot of animals tended to stay clear of Gargoyles. Horses were particularly spooked by their kind for some reason, as were donkeys, but there were not that many donkeys at Wyvern anyway.

The jackass he had been riding at the start had been moving very slowly, but then again they had all been, which really was to be expected considering whom and what was on their backs. However, a sharp whip on the backsides from his tail and a kick to their sides certainly made them pick up their pace.

The young warrior passed through the gates of the castle, riding the last of the five jackasses out of the castle, where he would take it just beyond the forest and up a steep hill where the other mage-donkeys and some soldiers were already waiting for them.

As he rode through the gates, his departure was viewed by several others on the battlements, most of who were guards on duty and Gargoyles. Everyone else was inside either attending to their duties or clearing up after Constantine's attack.

Amongst the watchers were his two closest rookery brothers and the Wild Four, standing with the Princess above the gate of the castle where they had the best view…

"Seems our brother is still enjoying himself," the brother with the long spikes noticed.

"Maybe we should try it, too?" the smoke-black Gargoyle suggested.

"Too late, it is the last one," his brother replied. "I counted them."

"Pity," Katherine added, being a most startling sight between the four Gargoyles. "My father had a long and strong whip that I have never used before. I should have liked to have tried it on _them_."

"_Giddeyup!_" They heard the aquamarine Gargoyle yelling excitedly in the distance.

0000000000

Not too far away, the Magus was watching them, happy that the Princess seemed to have recovered from her ordeal at the hands of the mages, when he noticed Goliath walking in his direction.

"Goliath," the castle's own mage greeted.

The leader of the Gargoyle clan and castle stopped, looking at the white haired Human.

"I wanted to thank you personally, Magus," he said. "Not just for the way you protected the Princess and the castle, but also for me and my clan. It was your spell that saved the castle... " Goliath paused, "…and gave my clan a _miraculous_ gift."

At the Magus's confused look, he added… "The chance to see the dawn, something that all gargoyles have dreamed about since the nights they were hatched, will be something my clan will never forget. And neither will I."

For a long few moments the Human didn't know what to say, feeling overwhelmed with the Gargoyle's praise while at the same time still having some slight regrets about lying to him about his part with the Princess and the English Priests, and also about his involvement with the mages' transformations.

He still didn't know the full story about what had happened, as he had been unconscious the whole time. When he had awakened, the Princess had just pleaded with him to tell Goliath that he had been the one who changed the dark sorcerers.

When he had asked what had truly happened, she had just told him that she could say nothing more, as she had promised not to reveal anything. And what with him being the loyal and love-struck mage that he was, he of course obeyed.

He was about to thank Goliath for his kind words when he quickly remembered what he should have told the clan already about the spell, the part about the risk of longer waking periods.

"Goliath, I forgot to..." he began.

"Goliath," a soft female voice stopped him. "I would speak with you."

The large Gargoyle looked to the source of the voice, finding his wife in the middle of six of the seven young Gargoyles whom she had had trouble with previously.

"Excuse me, Magus," Goliath told the wizard politely, as he stepped by him without looking back.

"But…" the Magus started, but stopped. 'Oh well, he will find out eventually,' the Human thought, as he watched the large Gargoyle approach the Princess. 'I'll let the Captain know, just so they have no need to worry.'

With those thoughts, he turned and made his way down to the courtyard where his horse, the Captain and the few soldiers were even now waiting to take him to the hilltop where they would rendezvous with the aquamarine Gargoyle, the mages and the other soldiers waiting for them.

Although he had already said his goodbyes to Katherine, he couldn't help looking behind himself to give her one last look. The Princess noticed this and mouthed the word "goodbye" at him while giving him a warm smile.

The Magus smiled back and continued down into the courtyard.

"Katherine, what has happened?" Goliath asked, as he approached his wife while noticing that only one step was between her and them. "Have they been causing problems again?"

By the sound of his voice, the youngsters winced in union. They had just been standing around in silence with Katherine, watching their thicker rookery brother disappear in the distance, when she had suddenly called out to their leader.

If she was going to get them in trouble again, then that meant they were no doubt going to be doing extra chores for the rest of their lives.

All six of them groaned inwardly.

Thankfully, the Princess shook her head. "No, indeed not," she said, smiling. "They fought valiantly during the battle **and** came up with a good idea on how to handle the mages."

Goliath looked at her in a surprise that he shared with the young Gargoyles behind the Princess's back.

"So?" the large Gargoyle asked simply, for lack of better words.

"So," Katherine noted, crossing her arms. "As your… _mate_ and ruling partner of this kingdom, I would like to suggest that in light of their bravery and aid, you lift their punishment. I see no reason for it to continue, as I have now forgiven them for their crime against me."

This once again surprised both the young warriors and their leader. Though the latter didn't show it, but deep down he had been thinking about suspending the youngster's punishment long before now, but he would never have imagined that Katherine would be the person to suggest it.

After a long minute of Goliath staring intensely at them, the Wyvern Prince finally spoke. "Since you indeed fought well today and it is the Princess who asks this," he began, looking at the six while they looked hopefully at him. "Your punishment is now over."

The last words he spoke were soon buried beneath the ecstatic roars of joy coming from the young warriors. In a moment of sheer joy and gratitude, the one with the long shoulder and knee spikes suddenly embraced the Princess.

At first she seemed alarmed, but after a moment she just smiled and patted his back, carefully avoiding his shoulders.

When Goliath saw her do that, he smiled too.

0000000000

**Forty-Five Minutes Later; Hilltop: **

The ocean coloured Gargoyle, who was definitely _not_ just big boned, directed the last of the jackasses up to the top of the hill where the Captain was already waiting for him, together with the Magus who had already arrived some time before the heavy Gargoyle and some of his more experienced guards. The Magus, although having left at about the same time as the young warrior, had had the advantage of not having a lot of excess weight resulting in a slow moving donkey.

The mage-donkey heaved and panted, as it walked a snail's pace up the hill. Judging by its appearance, no one could have ever imagined that something as small as it could carry something as enormous as the Gargoyle it was presently carrying.

The Gargoyle grinned, as the jackass finally reached the top of the hill, looking as though its legs were ready to break.

The Captain, his guards and the Magus were there waiting for him, along with the other four mage-donkeys who stood close by with the guards holding onto them with ropes tied around their necks.

"And here's the last one!" the young one announced, as he dismounted the jackass while giving it one final sharp slap on the backside with his tail, to which it responded with a very painful sounding heehawing. The beast then slowly limped over to his four waiting comrades, all of which were now no longer wearing any robes.

"About time, too," the Captain commented while looking at the donkey-turned mages. Although he admittedly found this punishment appropriate and highly amusing, the time they had spent waiting was definitely not.

"Sorry about that," the overweight Gargoyle apologised. "I tried to get each of them here as fast as they could, but…" He patted his huge belly, smiling. "Well, you can't blame them really, considering the _load_ they had to carry."

The Captain smiled at him. The young fool maybe a big gullet, but he had a friendly nature and a heart of gold. He knew he was bigger than most of those in his clan, but he didn't let it bother him.

"Magus?" the Captain then addressed the young sorcerer, indicating to him that it was time, as they had waited long enough as it was. They had to embark on their journey right away if they were to get even a few miles out of the rest of the day.

The white-haired Human nodded and turned to the five gathered jackasses who waited anxiously for him to begin. He opened the Grimorum and raised his right hand, as he recited the spell from the book...

"Carmina inficiatur; metamorphosis eorum convertatur, vires eorum vinciantur!" _Let the spell be undone; let the transformation of them be reversed; let their powers be chained!_

The effect was instantaneous and was quite a sight to everyone gathered, especially the Captain's soldiers who had never seen magic at work before.

The donkeys at first seemed just to become nervous, as they pawed at the ground with their hooves, only to suddenly begin heehawing ecstatically with pain. The five of them began kicking their legs out from under them, as their flesh started to shift and bulge, and their bones twisted and cracked before everyone's eyes.

Their heehaws then turned quickly into high-shrilled screams, as their snouts shifted back into Human faces, and instead of pawing the earth with their hooves they then grabbed it with newly forming fingers.

"_Mary, sweet mother of God,_" one soldier whispered to the other behind the Captain's back.

Finally the transformation ended, and since the fur on their bodies had now disappeared, five naked Humans were kneeling down in front of the group, glaring at the Magus with a mix of anger, humiliation… and exhaustion.

"Can you talk again?" the Captain asked.

The Head Mage opened his mouth, seemingly testing himself. He coughed a little, as though he were afraid that if he started talking then all that would come out would be more heehaws.

"Ye… _yes_," he said, trying to keep some of his dignity by talking in his usual proud and arrogant tone, but not managing it in his current state. He moaned, as he tried straightening his back, eliciting a sharp snap and cracking sound from it. The fat Gargoyle had really done a number on him.

The rest of them felt the same, as they too moaned in agony while attempting to straighten themselves up.

"Good," the Captain said simply. "In that case we can start our journey then, and not a blasted moment too soon."

"I assume we shall be walking all the distance?" the former Head-sorcerer said snidely, still glaring at them all.

"A good idea," the Captain said, grabbing a sack lying beside him. He had actually brought some horses for them, but saw no reason why they couldn't walk a few more extra miles. If they could walk this far with the oversized Gargoyle riding on their backs as donkeys, then they could certainly do it as men without him. "But we can't risk offending a lady on the way now, can we?" he then added.

With those last words, he threw down what everyone at first thought were five garments over to the naked men, all of which didn't look much better than the bag they had just been pulled out of. In fact, as it turned out, the garments were actually nothing more than just mere bags with three holes cut in them for the head and arms to pass through.

The mages glared murderously at the Captain.

"You dare expect us to wear such coarse material?" the Head Mage hissed. "We will not…"

"So you would prefer going naked then?" the Captain said in amusement, making a move forward to seemingly take the 'clothes' away from them.

The powerless mages then just grasped the cloth bags tightly and began placing them over their heads very quickly.

"Fine," the Captain said, satisfied. "Then it's time to go. You will help carry some of the provisions, too." He pointed to some small bags that were filled with fruit and vegetables for their journey, indicating the mages to pick them up.

"You expect us to carry these things as well?" the leader of the former mages demanded, no longer able to suppress his anger. "This is an outrage! How dare you…!"

"As donkeys you would have had far less problems with it," the big Gargoyle suddenly commented, feeling ready to laugh at the sight of this senseless pride of theirs.

The mages shot dangerous looks at him, though their anger was also mixed in with a little fear. It wasn't just the fear of having a Gargoyle in their midst, but also because they feared that if they were to anger him then, Human now or not, he might force them into giving him another donkey-ride. Even the one among them who had been the first to suffer this humiliation, his back was still recovering from its ordeal.

"Or maybe pigs?" the heavy warrior continued. "That way if they cause you any problems, you won't have to search very far for food if you need any."

The Magus smiled at that, staring hard on his former fellow sorcerers with a look that made them take up the provisions quicker than lightning.

The soldiers and Gargoyle all laughed raucously at the sight.

"All right now, lad," the Captain said good heartedly to the young Gargoyle. "I reckon you've done your bit for tonight. You'd better be heading back to Wyvern now before Goliath starts wondering where you are."

"All right, Captain," the young one said obediently. He paused for one moment whilst looking at the five former jackasses. "Many thanks for the ride, my friends. And know that there will always be a stable open for you all, should you need it."

The mages would no doubt be snarling right now if they could, as they glared daggers at the fat beast, while he laughed and leapt off the hilltop, taking to the air.

0000000000

**Castle Wyvern; Same Time: **

The former leader of the Wyvern clan stood on the battlement of the castle that faced the sea. He stood relishing the warmth of the sun, as he watched over the ocean, trying to see as much as his single healthy eye allowed him. The light that sparkled off the waters shone brighter than any diamond or star he could think of.

It was the sea he had named his mate after, his 'Angel of The Sea' whose skin had been so soft and strong, much like she herself had been.

"Oh, my Angel," he thought aloud, and the longing in him hurt more than any wound he had ever received in battle had. 'If you could only stand beside me now and see all this... '

But she couldn't, for she was gone, having died while defending her clan and their allies, her body claimed by the sea that she had loved so. When she had died, he had wanted to join her, but now he knew he couldn't help but go on living by defending her memory and all that she had stood for. It was a struggle in which they had made a great deal of progress in the last few months.

So engrossed was he in his memories and the heavenly sight before him that he didn't notice someone approaching him from behind.

"Ahem?" the sound of someone coughing from behind him woke him out of his thoughts and made him turn around. For a moment, he was angry at the disturbance and had every intention of venting his anger at whoever had disturbed his reverie, until he discovered who it was.

Princess Katherine stood before him, the expression upon her face unreadable.

"Princess," he greeted, bowing shortly before her.

She said nothing at first, as she stared at him in a strange way that he couldn't really define. It almost looked like she was… _sorry_ about something?

"I wish to speak to you about my father," she began, her voice sounding more strained than he had ever heard her before.

The old Gargoyle nodded slowly, as the Princess seemed to be having a personal battle within herself.

She stood there a few moments longer, as she opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish. Seemingly she had something to say, but she did not have the words with which to say it with.

Then just when the old Mentor thought she would never come round to speaking again, she spoke…

"I know you weren't responsible for his death," she said finally. "I know you tried everything you could to save him, and it was…" She paused. "I know it was… _wrong_ of me to blame you for this from the beginning. I realise that now."

"You were a..." the old Gargoyle began, but the Princess raised a hand and stopped him.

"I know that I was young back then," the Human replied. "But I am not now, nor have I been for many a year. There is no excuse for my behaviour, so please… accept my humblest apologies."

The scarred warrior had to wait more than a few seconds, still feeling a bit shocked by this revelation and request, until finally he nodded.

"I know you were one of my father's closest friends, for that is what he tried to tell me in his final moments," Katherine continued, her face a mask. "But I didn't listen. I don't know if... No, I don't think we can ever become that. Despite what I now know, I still feel... "

She stopped, the memory of her father on his deathbed flashing in front of her eyes.

"I will always honour his friendship with you," the Princess finally promised. It was not much, but it was all she could afford at the moment.

The old Gargoyle nodded, realising how hard this must be for her. Although she had seemingly come to terms with her father's death at long last, it was obviously not easy for her to let go of years of hatred for someone overnight. It was going to take time.

"Your father would be proud of you," he said honestly.

"I hope so," Katherine replied quietly, and then added more loudly. "Thank you, and good day."

With that, she turned and left, leaving the old warrior alone with his thoughts.

No, she was not ready to forgive and forget just yet, but she had taken the first step by forgiving him. In time, he had no doubt that all her psychological wounds would come to heal. It was just going to take some time. And after all the waiting their clan had done so far, he could wait a little longer.

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**Just Before Sunset: **

The rest of the day had gone by peacefully. Most of the Gargoyles spent the whole day just looking at everything, at how different it all was in the sunlight.

The young Gargoyles, the Trio and the Wild Four, had spent nearly all of the day celebrating their newfound freedom. The large aquamarine Gargoyle, once he had returned home and discovered his extra chores had now finally come to an end, had celebrated in his own fashion… meaning that he had spent the whole day in the kitchens and food storehouse.

As for the Humans, after they had finished cleaning up after the battle they had spent most of the day resting in their beds. Katherine too was even now rousing from her sleep, but that was nothing new as she usually slept during the day now.

Katherine yawned, as she awoke. After blinking the sleep from her eyes, she looked around, but saw nothing of Goliath. Obviously he was either out doing his clan duties, or perhaps still marvelling at the way everything was bathed in golden light. She had to admit she found their naivety at the day both amusing and refreshing. Since she lived in the sun every day, she was long since used to it and found nothing particularly special about it.

She soon got up and dressed herself. Even though she usually had handmaidens to dress her, the last few months of being married to a Gargoyle had taught her how independent and strong she could be when she wanted to, so she had stopped using her handmaidens over a month ago.

After she was dressed, she decided to go and have a walk first around the battlements before having breakfast, and it was there where she found Goliath.

Like many of his clan, Goliath had spent most of the day marvelling at the sight of the earth's golden star, never growing tired of its beauty, especially the sunset. He never knew the sky could turn red.

He knew the Magus's spell was not permanent and that after today they would return instantly to normal, stone by day and flesh by night, as all Gargoyles were hatched to be. The thought made him a little sad… To be presented with this great beauty, knowing that he might very well never see it again seemed almost cruel.

"Greetings, Goliath?" Katherine's voice greeted.

Goliath turned and saw his wife approach him. "Good evening, Katherine," Goliath said, smiling. "Did you sleep well?"

"Very well, thank you," she replied.

"How fares our guest, the Lady Finella?" the Gargoyle Prince then asked.

"I haven't yet checked on her progress, but from what the Royal Physician told me earlier, she will soon be well enough. She still requires a lot of rest before she is able to return home, but in a few more days she will be fine."

"That is good," Goliath remarked.

They remained silent for a few moments after that, standing still where they were, both unsure of what next to say to the other.

Goliath on the one claw did have a feeling of what to say to Katherine, but he wasn't entirely certain of how to tell her.

When he had first married her, he hadn't thought for one second he would even be considering telling her what he was thinking now, but after the event with the youngsters and what his Mentor had told him what she had said to him earlier, he realised that the impossible had happened. Unbelievable as it was, Katherine had now apparently embraced him and his clan as full citizens of her kingdom.

They had always known that this would be a possibility, but after so long of being mated to her, Goliath had thought it would never come to be. But it had done, and now because of it, as they had originally planned, he had to tell her something. It was just trying to find the right words to explain it to her that was vexing.

"Katherine, I…" the clan-leader started. "I have something that I need to tell you."

"What is it, husband?" she asked, looking at him curiously. She hadn't known him to be so hesitant before, at least not in the last few months after he had finally taken a stand against her.

While he stuttered to find the right wording, he missed the last few rays of sunlight, as they disappeared below the horizon.

"I need to tell you that… that… ohhhhhh…" Goliath groaned, as he felt a wave of dizziness and nausea come over him.

"Goliath?" two Katherine's seemingly asked him, as his eyes developed double-vision. "Goliath, are you all right?"

But all right he felt he was anything but, and not just him but all of his clan. All around the castle there was a chorus of countless groans, moaning and retching. Some of the clan had even fallen right down into the ground the moment the sun had set.

Goliath bent over the battlement he was on, fighting hard to keep the contents of his stomach from decorating the castle walls below. If all of his clan were feeling as he did now, he dreaded to think what the walls and floor of the room where the large youngster of the Trio was looked like now.

"Ohhh my head," he groaned, seemingly in pain. "I haven't felt like this since… since… "

"Since the night when you and that soldier decided to… _sample_ some of the castle's fine wine," Katherine finished for him.

Goliath gave another groan.

"I know a hangover when I see one, Goliath," she told him, remembering all too well the night when he and that soldier had tried besting each other in a drinking contest, and having seen it plenty of times already from the other men in the castle at meal-times. But she had never seen one come over so suddenly before, as Goliath had been dead sober less than a few seconds ago.

"I haven't drunk anything stronger than water for weeks," Goliath swore to her. "And I haven't even drunk _anything_ in the last… ohhhhh, my head… my stomach... _My_ _everything_!"

Katherine cautiously approached him, not wanting to risk him heaving all his contents over her fresh new gown. She had lost one too many gowns to the clan as it was.

"Come, let's get you back to our chambers," she told him. "We will learn all that has transpired soon."

Staggering, Goliath followed Katherine with his claw on her shoulder to guide him… and very nearly dragged her down with him when he collapsed down the stairs.

0000000000

After having nearly all of the castle-guards come to help carry him back to the Royal chambers, Goliath lay on the bed with a cold damp cloth upon his forehead, feeling as though his head had been used as a punching bag, his stomach like it was about to burst, and feeling just plain miserable.

Katherine sat by his side, occasionally dapping his head with the damp cloth.

"You don't have to stay here with me, Katherine," Goliath told her.

"After all that you did for me, saving me, my people and my castle from Constantine, how could I do any less?" she replied. "Besides, as your wife and ruling partner it is expected of me."

Half an hour later, Goliath's former Night-Angel came into the room…. Or rather, she _staggered_ in.

"How are the others?" he asked her.

"As well as can be expected," she said, groaning as she spoke. "Though I can't say I'm too surprised at the outcome of this."

"What do you mean?" Goliath said, looking curiously at her.

His azure sister shook her head as though in pain, but was in reality mentally rebuking herself for nearly giving herself away. She had expected something like this to happen from the start because a spell as powerful as the one to keep Gargoyles awake during the day would definitely have some kind of price to pay. Obviously they were now feeling the side-affects.

"I spoke to the Magus before he left," she lied. "He warned me that there would be certain side-affects to the spell that he used on us."

"Define _side-affects_?" Goliath queried, still groaning.

"Well," she replied, "basically, it would be like what the Humans call a hangover, when you've drunk too much wine. Until we have a decent day's sleep as stone, I'm afraid we'll be feeling the ramifications of today's adventure till sunrise."

Goliath's groans deepened.

His former Angel shrugged. "You did _ask_ for an explanation."

"Yes," he said, smiling a humourless smile. "Remind me to be careful what I wish for from now on."

The rest of the clan were also spending their night in agony, as they all curled up in corners, hunched over battlements and some, like Goliath, were even lying in human beds that they had borrowed. Everywhere from one end of the castle to the other, there was not a single Gargoyle that night that was not groaning and wishing for a quick death.

But the worst part was what was yet to come…

0000000000

From the other side of the castle, Goliath's Second and rookery brother was going through his own magic side-affects, and was not coping very well with it.

"Come on, friend!" the loud cry of an excited young soldier yelled, as he strode up to the Clan-Second, slapping him hard on his back.

Normally, any kind of slap, no matter how hard, from a mere human wouldn't do anything to even rouse a Gargoyle, what with them having more superior strength, size and stature… However, it was rare for them to be suffering as major a hangover as the one they all had right now.

The one that the Captain and Brother Edmund called 'Othello' fought a wave of nausea, brought up by the friendly if not overdone slap on the back by the young human.

"Hey, what's up with you?" the young guard called Connor asked.

Othello glared at him. "Nothing," he muttered. "Just… nothing." He moaned.

"Well, come on then!" Connor repeated eagerly. "We've just spent the whole day clearing up after that bastard Constantine's attack, so now we're ready to get down and celebrate!"

Othello's eyes widened at him. "Umm, friend…" he said unsurely. "Don't take this the wrong way, but… "

"Think nothing of it," Connor assured him. "We have already prepared everything in the Great Hall. We've got more barrels of wine than all the Kings of the world! Not to mention everything that the Cook could rustle up from the storehouse. Trust me, we're gonna be shouting the halls down tonight!"

Othello felt his headache begin to worsen, and had a feeling it was only going to get worse.

0000000000

He had been right.

The young soldier, Connor, had not been lying about the planned events for the night's activities. The guards of the castle must have brought up every barrel from the cellar that they could fine. The tables were all loaded with food of every type, with goblets filled to the brim and the castle musicians playing their finest tunes.

The whole of the Gargoyle clan at that moment wanted nothing more than, as the humans would say, to be buried in their graves.

Even the large young Gargoyle from the Trio felt ill, as he stared at the endless rows of tender roast meats and sweet fruits before him. By now he would usually be tearing into the meats as though there were no tomorrow, but unfortunately the constant churning in his oversized stomach prevented him from enjoying as such.

Goliath was there of course, as it was expected for the Prince Regent to be at the festivities. He sat at his throne, watching as the humans celebrated in full cheer, but for once he felt no glee at seeing his clan and the humans sitting side by side in peace.

At that moment, all he wanted was to crawl back up into the bed that Katherine had so kindly let to him in his night of need. Even now he had to bite his tongue every time when one of the handmaidens came up with a plate of something for him to try.

Every Gargoyle was the same, as they sat with their heads in their hand-claws, attempting to rest, hoping that the constant beating in their heads would soon lessen.

Even the poor hound-beast lay on the floor with its head beneath its massive paws, whimpering loudly, only taking the occasional slurp of water from its bowl.

"You should have seen the one soldier I fought!" one of the guards said loudly, as he chatted with his fellow guards and two of Goliath's clan, both of whom looked as if they would rather be anywhere but there. "I swear the coward wet himself when I came at him with me sword!"

All around, Humans were chatting, shouting and laughing out raucously at everyone who looked as if they were even remotely interested in their stories.

"_I heard Constantine fell on his own sword, the idiot!" _

"_My brother and I had to keep a whole troop of them away from the gates!" _

"_The cowards ran away as soon as we let our arrows fly!"_

"_Sure it wasn't your breath that got them scared?" _

Goliath winced, praying to the Great Dragon that the Humans would just lower the volume of their voices if only for a short while. He briefly wondered if this was what humans went through when he and his clan were in good health. He would have to make a note of asking his clan-mates to perhaps cut down on the sound of their roaring from now on.

"Hey there, old friend!" a loud but familiar voice shouted in his ear.

Goliath shuddered, but looked to his left to confirm his suspicions. Sure enough the voice turned out to belong to none other than the same human male who had introduced Goliath to the exotic potent wine that had left him a drunken lout for one whole evening.

"Greetings, my friend," Goliath replied, giving him a false smile while underneath he was thinking… 'Ohhh by the Great Dragon, have mercy!'

"Haven't seen you in a while!" the human belched. Obviously he had not lost his thirst for the drink, especially at a party. "Been hitting the drink again have we?"

The Gargoyle Prince just gave him a curious stare. "Apparently not as much as you, my friend," he told him. He still didn't know the man's name?

His comrade laughed out loud. "Too right, too!" He reached over to the other side of the table, retrieving a large bottle. "So what say you and I show all these amateurs how it's done and pick up where we left off? As I recall, you once claimed no mere Human could beat a Gargoyle at holding a drink, therefore… I hereby challenge you to a rematch!"

Goliath felt his insides beginning to churn again, as he stared practically in horror at the large bottle of wine that his 'friend' was holding out to him.

"By the Dragon,' he moaned mentally. 'Give me strength… and a sword to strike myself down with, _please_.'

0000000000

**Next Evening: **

Goliath did not awaken with a roar, as was common with Gargoyles, but with a low moan that rang back and forth inside the leader's head. Fortunately, it soon dissipated.

The terrible queasiness he had suffered the day and night before, along with the rest of his clan, together with the alcohol that that lone Human had made him drink had thankfully faded. He still felt weak, but at least the headaches were now gone. The stone-sleep had rejuvenated him and all those of his clan, curing them of most of the Magus's spell's ramifications.

Groaning, he tried to sit up only to end up falling back down again, not realising at first that he was actually lying down instead of standing. When he realised that he felt around, feeling the softness beneath him, and discovered that what he felt was actually a Human bed.

'I'm in our bed again,' the leader of his clan thought, realising that he was in the old bed in the Princess' and his room.

Remembering the last time he had slept there, and who had nearly ended up being crushed because of it, the large Gargoyle quickly rose, expecting to find Katherine flattened beneath him, but was relieved to find merely a creased pillow there instead.

Goliath heaved a sigh of relief.

"I was luckier this time," he heard his wife's voice from behind him, and turned around to see Katherine sitting in the chair near the fireplace, a book resting in her lap.

She looked at him with a look of bemusement on her face. "Though this time you didn't even make it to our room before the celebration had even ended," she then added.

Slowly, Goliath's memories returned, though as they did he wished they would just stay behind the thick fog he felt in his head. Yet appearing through this fog he saw himself being half-led and half-carried by two guards to his and Katherine's room, with Katherine beside him.

He groaned, holding his head in shame as the memories this night flooded through him. 'Not again,' he moaned in his mind.

"I'm sorry," he apologised, trying to fight the small bit of alcohol still left in his body while thinking how much damage his lack of self-control might have brought to all of them. "I'm so sorry, Katherine. This is the second time my ridiculous… "

"Don't be," his wife replied, rising from her chair and walking closer to her Gargoyle husband "Despite the alcohol you weren't the only one with problems. I heard all of your clan whom the Magus cast his spell on felt ill."

Goliath nodded, but still felt none the wiser. "Still," he said. "This is the second time that I have offended you with my behaviour, and I did not help matters by consuming more of the drink that…"

"There's no need to apologise," she assured him. "You aren't the only one suffering from effects of the drink last night, and I speak not just of those of your clan, but of mine as well. You forget that last night was a night of celebration for our victory over Constantine. Even now many of my soldiers are still feeling the ramifications today, as yours were last night."

Goliath gave a small smile, feeling slightly better as he took notice of her soft and definitely _not_ angry voice. She obviously bore him no ill will, for if she had done then she would have undoubtedly let him know by now.

He frowned, as he remembered how bad he and his clan had already been feeling even before their Human friends had decided to have a great celebration and insisted on them taking part in it, with him fulfilling his duties as leader.

"I must see to my clan," he said, trying to stand up and finally managing it… though with some shaking in his legs.

"No, you must not," Katherine insisted, stepping up to him and pressing her left hand against the Gargoyle's masculine chest, making him nearly fall backward, giving him final proof of how weak he really was at that moment. "I have ordered the Captain's best soldier to look after my… I mean _our_ warriors, and assist them if need be. As for your clan, I am sure your Second is more than capable to take care of things."

Goliath looked as if he were about to resist, but then after a quick moment he seemingly relaxed and nodded in resignation, agreeing with her. "Very well," he told her. "But I expect to be informed on all things, no matter how small or insignificant."

Katherine nodded. "You will be," she said assuredly.

Goliath nodded back, and then added. "Thank you."

The two of them stood there like that for a few moments until Goliath cocked his head and eyeridge at her and said… "Umm, you can take your hand off my chest now, you know. I swear to you I am not going anywhere."

Katherine blushed, as she realised that she had been standing there now for over a minute, her hand resting on Goliath's heart.

"Sorry!" she squeaked in embarrassment, pulling her hand back and hiding it behind her, her face going red.

She always knew that Goliath had been powerfully built, as one would have to be blind not to notice that, but she had never fully realised it until just now _how_ well built he was. His chest felt almost as hard at night as it did during the day, yet it was as warm as a stove-fire and she could feel his heart beating in it as steadily as a warrior's drum.

"Sit down and let me bring you some water before we see anyone!" the Princess said quickly, her face still flushed. "This is the least I can do for you saving my people."

If Goliath was curious about what had just happened then he did not show it, but he did say…

"_Our_ people," Goliath replied softly, referring to both their clans as one people, not just the two.

The Princess stopped and stared at him for a moment, before she smiled again and nodded. "_Our_ people," she agreed.

With this she turned and walked to a corner of the room, where a serving-maid had a short time ago brought in a clay-jug full of chilled water and two metallic cups, leaving Goliath to look at her, surprised… and very thoughtful.

Looking at her now, one would never believe that she was the same Princess of Wyvern from all those months ago who would sooner see all Gargoyles dead than acknowledge them, let alone marry one. Yet now, she had apparently accepted him, his clan, and had even grown close to one of the new hatchlings in the rookery, almost as though he were an adopted son of all things.

There was no doubt about it. She had definitely changed. She had made peace with the old Mentor whom she had blamed for her father's death all these years, the young tricksters of the clan who had humiliated and frightened her, and even he her husband who had dominated her and seemingly taken her throne from her.

He had considered telling her before he had fallen ill yesterday, and despite the repeat of his less than respectful behaviour last night at the Human's celebration she had still treated him with respect, something the _old_ Katherine would have never done. That alone gave him proof that the time for concealment had passed and the time for revelations had now finally come.

"Katherine, we need to talk," he said simply, as she came back with the two cups in her hands, patting a spot on the bed beside him as a request for her to sit down, while he did the same.

"What is it?" Katherine asked curiously, but did as she was requested to by sitting down.

Goliath sighed. "I need to tell you something," he started. "As you know, your father arranged our marriage as a means to bring our two clans together, to show everyone that peace and co-existence between us was possible." Goliath took one of the cups of water, having a hard time controlling his voice. "But there is more... "

The Princess stiffened, feeling a coldness creep up into her limbs, as she tried to imagine what else her father had thought up. She now understood how right he had been, but this didn't make her shudder any less at the thought of what more he had had planned.

"Don't tell me I have to do the Ascendance Hunt?" she asked fearfully.

Goliath had to laugh out loud at that, as he imagined Katherine running around in the forest in a loincloth and ragged top, hunting with only a Bow and Arrow or such.

Whenever young Gargoyles would reach a certain age, they would undergo various tasks and trials to prove that they were now of full age and ready warriors. The Ascendance Hunt was one of such trials where the youngsters of the clan would go forth into the forest to hunt down and bring back a beast, using only the barest of necessities such as a Bow and Arrow, a dagger or even just their bare claws.

Goliath laughed. "No, no, nothing like that," he said assuredly.

"Oh, well, what then?"

Goliath sighed again, the amusement faded. "While Prince Malcolm wanted us all living together in peace, he still did not want you to be trapped in a marriage against your will… at least not if it wasn't necessary," he explained. "He made it clear to us that if you ever showed any signs of humility, any sign that you no longer regarded us as your enemy… then we were to set you free."

Katherine blinked. "Free?" she asked.

Goliath nodded. "Our marriage has been a long and trying thing for you, Your Highness," he said, referring to her once again as Her Highness, something he had not done in months. "For _both_ of us," he added. "At the time it was necessary, but now… Now I think it is necessary no longer. So if you wish, we can arrange for our marriage to be annulled as soon as possible."

Katherine's jaw dropped.

"But the Church," she began unbelieving, watching as Goliath sipped a little of the water. "Surely they wouldn't allow it?"

Goliath held up his claw. "We talked all this through with Brother Edmund years ago. Because you and I never… err…" he began to look nervous. "Well, that is to say… because you… because _we_… because we never _consummated_ our wedding vows. That means the marriage was in a way never made official, meaning we can have it undone whenever we wish."

"But…" Katherine began again. "How will you…?"

"Brother Edmund will see to it, as he has promised," her husband replied, calming her down. "He will write to the Church, explain the situation about how we were never able to… _you know_, because of Constantine, and that we have since then come to realise that neither of us are well suited to one another. The Church should then grant the annulment.

"And what if they don't?"

"Brother Edmund seems to be sure they will, but if they don't then we have planned something else by… _stretching_ the truth further for them," Goliath told her.

At Katherine's inquisitive look, he continued…

"As you may guess, neither Brother Edmund nor your father or the Captain were too keen on the idea of lying to the Church, but hopefully this will not come to that. If the first plan fails then we will claim to the Church that you discovered some things about me after we were wed, such as suspecting me as having contact with things not of God's earth, which is more or less true concerning my clan. We will use this and a number of other fabrications, hopefully resulting in the Church finally granting us the annulment, but like I said, Brother Edmund seems certain the Church will do so once we have explained the situation."

He looked at Katherine who still looked doubtful but said nothing. "Once this is over," he said, "if you wish to, you will be free again to marry whomsoever you desire. Not to mention…" he added playfully, "no longer having stone-skin scattered all over your room anymore."

Katherine still said nothing, feeling unable to speak as sudden and unexpected emotions raced within her.

'Does he wish to be rid of me?' she asked herself and was surprised she was even asking it. After all, this was what she had been hoping and praying for ever since she had first learnt that she was to become Goliath's wife, to be free of him. So why on Earth was she questioning it now?

Katherine just sat where she was, her thoughts and feelings churning within her. Part of her was glad that this whole sorry affair had now finally been brought to an end; that she would regain her throne and things would get back to normal, but… for some reason, she didn't feel as gay or joyful as she would have expected herself to. She neither felt happy or sad, just… empty.

"Your clan would no doubt welcome it if you could mate with one of them instead," Katherine heard herself say in a neutral tone.

"No doubt many of them would," Goliath replied, thinking of the elders. "But…" he hesitated. "I would like to say that even if I did ever find another mate, or even if by some miracle if I reunited with my former love... _no one_ would ever be able to replace _you_."

Katherine stared on him in surprise, making Goliath shrug his massive shoulder.

"You are a pretty hard mate to forget, My Katherine," he admitted.

Katherine smiled, as she stared at him. "And I can honestly say that even if I was to search the whole world from one end to the other, I would never find anyone to fill your shoes… assuming you wore any that is."

The two of them chuckled.

"So…" Goliath finally asked. "The choice is yours, My Wife. What are we to do?"

Katherine for once could not find anything to say, as she stared at the Gargoyle that had brought so much misery and anguish into her life, and yet so much joy, wisdom and humility. Through him, she had learnt the error of her ways.

She had looked down on his clan with contempt instead of treating them with honour and respect, held onto past grudges against those who were not to blame. And she had learned the true beauty of what it meant to be in a clan… something she had almost forgotten since the death of her father.

She found her doubts growing by the moment, as she looked deep into his eyes, the eyes that she had come to respect and found to be his most appealing feature.

She couldn't be sure, but was that a glimmer of affection in them?

Her thoughts grew jumbled, and part of her wanted to run out of the room right then to escape them. What she was thinking… and what was she _feeling_?

Goliath then smiled at her, as though to be encouraging, and for the first time Katherine realised just how handsome he was when he did that.

The Princess smiled and made her decision.

**THE END!**

_**Yeah, I know… What the Hell, where's the rest of it? We had considered writing a conclusion to this, but we couldn't decide whether to have Katherine get with Goliath or just split them up, so we decided to leave it at a cliff-hanger so everyone could dream up their own ending, or in case we should ever decide to write a conclusion! Anyone who wants to write a conclusion now though, please feel free to do so!**_


	5. Gargoyles Movie!

On July 13th, 2010. Disney announced their intentions to develop a movie about "Gargoyles." That movie _isn't_ based on the excellent animated series from the 1990's developed by Greg Weisman, Frank Paur, Michael Reaves, Brynne Chandler, and so many other brilliant and talented individuals.

Disney is sitting on an interesting property that could be a gold mine, and we need to convince them that "Gargoyles," the real "Gargoyles" is worth pursuing.

For more information, go to the website Facebook, and search for **Make a REAL "Gargoyles" movie, Disney! **

I am also planning to go through all four chapters of this saga, within the next few months or so, to give the saga a fresh look, with new and extended scenes! Be sure to keep a lookout!


	6. Announcement

**Special Note; to let everyone know that the extended version of this saga is now, at long last, being posted!**

**A completely revamped edition of this saga, with new/extended and altered scenes, plus new characters and themes taken from the official Gargoyles comics (the ones from SLG, and written by Greg Weisman, _not_ the ones by Marvel)!**

**We'll be leaving this saga here, just in case some people wish to compare the two.**

**Just go to my profile and view my fics. Look for "Between Night & Day: Extended Version"!**

**Feedback, of course, will be most welcome and appreciated!**

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**Also, on a separate note: Apparently, the Government are considering an international treaty with ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement)! If the bill goes through, it will force ISPs and websites to track our every move, turn over our personal information, and report our activity to the government, all in the name of copyright protection. This may also lead to the end of fanfiction!**

**The European Parliament still has to approve ACTA for it to go into effect around the world. If they vote NO, then ACTA will be effectively dismantled - even in countries that have already signed it.**

**No matter where you live, call on the EU Parliament to take a stand and vote "NO" on ACTA! (Remove spaces)**

**www .accessnow .org/ page /s/ just-say-no-to-acta**

**Pass the word! **


	7. 2nd announcement

Just to let everyone know that my Extended Edition of this saga is now all up and ready and for reading!

Also, I have some news that a lot of readers/writers might be interested in…

STOP the destruction of FF!

Greetings,

(www. /petitions/ fanfiction-net- stop-the-destruction-of-fanfiction-net)

Ever since it was opened, FF had always been a place for avid fans- of ANYTHING- to feel at home. To express whatever is on our minds and truly let our love for characters, plotlines and scenarios shine through.

Now all of a sudden, FF has decided to go through a massive upheaval and remove thousands of stories from its library, some of the best fanfics ever written, gone, never to be read again. They are removing anything involving sexual situations, or violence, or inspired by a song, the list goes on. And we as readers see this as a gross waste of talent and incredible material.

FF has always been a place for us writers to 'Unleash our imagination' as the tagline states, and now we are having that right to freedom of speech and expression taken away from us. Since when are they allowed to dictate what goes into our stories? They are OUR pieces of work. What if the violence or sexual content is part of the plotline? This whole situation is absurd. There are better ways to deal with 'inappropriate' content than to remove it altogether. What about adult filters? Age restrictions? There are so many other options!

So I'm asking please, for all us readers, writers, and fans alike... STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF FF!


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